Bill would require Legislature to approve LCB price increases
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HARRISBURG -- A state lawmaker from Moon has an idea that's likely to interest many consumers of wine and spirits in Pennsylvania: Republican Rep. Mark Mustio wants to prohibit any price increases by the state Liquor Control Board without prior approval from the Legislature and the governor.
Mr. Mustio said today that a new LCB policy for "logistics, transportation and merchandising fees" on liquor and wine prompted him to propose House Bill 1661. It comes amidst a looming battle in the House over whether to completely privatize wine and liquor sales in the state -- a major shift that House Majority Leader Mike Turzai, R-Bradford Woods, is pushing. Republican Gov. Tom Corbett has a study panel looking into privatization, with a report due this summer.
Mr. Mustio complained that the LCB wants to convert from "a flat, per-container fee" on wine and liquor into a "percentage-based fee," based on size of products.
"This shift will significantly and unfairly inflate the shelf price of a product following any supplier price increases," he said. "The LCB's conversion scheme amounts to higher costs that are inevitably passed on to consumers."
He also criticized the "unchecked authority" of "unaccountable, unelected bureaucrats" at the LCB.
Critics of the current state-owned and operated system, in effect since 1933, already complain Pennsylvania liquor prices are higher than in many nearby states. An LCB spokeswoman declined to comment but said the board may discuss the issue at a meeting on Wednesday.
First Published June 14, 2011 3:21 pm
