It蘑菇视频 time to rethink the state-run liquor system
Thankfully, after more than two months, Governor Wolf has begun to ease the restrictions he placed on Pennsylvanians during his statewide shutdown order. As we transition back to normalcy, my Senate Republican colleagues and I will continue our goal of passing laws that focus on rebuilding Pennsylvania’s economy and getting our state back to work.
As chair of the Senate Law and Justice Committee, I think it is essential to highlight the shortcomings of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) during this pandemic and the impact that it had on consumers…and by consumers, I mean us, the taxpayers who own this state-run system.
On March 16, the PLCB announced, with only one day’s notice, they would close every outlet its consumers can access. Quite literally, they turned out the lights and went home. All 603 stores were closed, the distribution network ground to a halt, and the online ordering portal closed.
Finally, after two weeks of consumers’ lack of access, the PLCB silently issued a press release on April 1st that their E-commerce site was accepting orders starting that same day. However, it became immediately apparent how unprepared the PLCB was to accommodate the heightened demand they caused by cutting off supply for weeks.
In the first week of E-commerce sales, the online system saw 1.9 million individuals attempt to access the site. To avoid the system being overwhelmed and crashing, the Liquor Control Board saw fit to throttle access to the website. Many of you will unfavorably recall the “Thank you for being a valued customer” landing page. As a result, only roughly 7,800 of those 1.9 million individuals were able to place an order.
After weeks of hearing from frustrated Pennsylvanians, I held a hearing of the Senate Law and Justice Committee on May 6th to demand answers for many of the questions we were all asking, but I was disappointed with the answers – I think we all were. The Liquor Control Board refused to answer who specifically made the decision to close the retail stores in March, nor were they able to offer a satisfactory explanation for subsequent steps taken. The hearing only led to more confusion and questions.
I have said over the last few weeks that now is not the time to discuss privatization in Pennsylvania. I think it is inappropriate to make sweeping changes in the midst of a pandemic, and I stand by that statement. However, as we transition to a semblance of normalcy, the deficiencies of the Liquor Control Board have made it clear that the time for those conversations has come.
Senator Pat Stefano is the Chairman of the Senate Law and Justice Committee and represents Pennsylvania’s 32nd Senatorial District covering Fayette, Somerset, and parts of Westmoreland Counties.