Corbett to Senate: Pass Liquor Bill by June 30

Gov. Tom Corbett wants the state Senate to pass a liquor privatization bill before the end of June.

By Eric Boehm | PA Independent CAMP HILL, Pa.— Gov. Tom Corbett said Friday he wants the state Senate to pass a liquor privatization bill before the end of June and reaffirmed that he wants the proceeds from the sale of the state-owned wine and spirit stores to go to school districts. Related story: Pa.'s Prohibition Era May Finally End Addressing a crowd of conservative activists at the Pennsylvania Leadership Conference in this suburb of Harrisburg, Corbett asked if there were any state Senators in the crowd and delivered a straightforward request. “We’re asking the Senate to act,” Corbett said. “Get something to my desk by June 30.” The state House passed a liquor privatization bill in March, without the support of a single Democratic …

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State Store at South Mall Closed for Remodeling

The Wine and Spirits Shop at South Mall will open in a few weeks after it gets a makeover.

The Wine and Spirits store at South Mall in Salisbury Township is temporarily closed for a makeover and will open in a few weeks, according to a construction worker involved in the renovation.

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5 Liquor-Laced Facts About the PLCB

The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board regulates what spirits we drink and takes in a lot of money. Here are some facts about who takes your money and where it goes.

Gov. Tom Corbett on Wednesday presented a plan to privatize Pennsylvania's liquor stores which have been on a short leash held by the state since...forever. The conversation among legislators, Corbett and the state's liquor-governing agency, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, in the coming months will be interesting to be sure. But here are five facts you may not know about the people who stock our liquor stores: 1. There are 605 liquor stores in PA: 504 self service stores, 72 premium collection stores, 19 one-stop stores, nine wholesale stores and one e-commerce store. Of those, 159 are open on Sunday. 2. There is an 18 percent tax on every bottle of wine and liquor sold in Pennsylvania that is referred to as the "Johnstown Flood Tax…

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Does Salisbury Support Liquor Store Privatization?

Tell us what you think about Gov. Corbett's proposal to privatize state liquor stores.

Gov. Tom Corbett's proposal Wednesday to get Pennsylvania out of the wine and spirits business was met by a range of reaction from consumers to restaurateurs and beer distributors. Corbett's plan would replace hundreds of state-owned stores with twice as many private outlets and allow beer and wine to be sold at supermarkets, pharmacies, convenience stores and big-box stores. Vincent Cao, of Emmaus, who was stocking up on gifts of red wine and cognac at the Wine and Spirits Shop in Emmaus, liked the idea of privatizing state stores because he would have more places to buy alcohol, such as supermarkets. "It would be very convenient," Cao said. Cao said although state store workers would lose their jobs, privatization would also create new …

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What Time Are Liquor Stores Open New Year's Eve?

State liquor stores will be open until 8 p.m. on New Year's Eve

All PA Wine & Spirits Stores will be open until 8 p.m. on New Year's Eve. There are 15 state stores in Lehigh County and 13 in Northampton County listed on the LCB's website. Check the lists for addresses and phone numbers.

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Liquor Store Union Gave $140k to Pa. Politicians

The union that represents Pa. state store employees gave thousands of dollars to lawmakers in 2012

By Eric Boehm | PA Independent HARRISBURG — The labor union that forms the backbone of opposition to Republican plans to privatize Pennsylvania’s liquor store system gave more than $140,000 to state-level candidates in 2012, including plenty of campaign cash to some high-ranking Republicans.   The United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1776, which counts about 3,000 state liquor store employees among its members, is the most visible and vocal opponent of House Majority Leader Mike Turzai’s, R-Allegheny, call to privatize the state-owned liquor monopoly. And with Gov. Tom Corbett in support of privatization and the GOP in control of both chambers of the General Assembly, the union must rely on more than just Democratic support to keep …

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1800 Tequila Recalled Due to Glass Bits in Some Bottles, LCB Says

Pa. state stores announced a voluntary recall of 1800 Tequila because some bottles may contain glass particles.

The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board Friday alerted customers to a voluntary partial recall of 1800® Tequila 1.75 Liter Silver, Reposado and Coconut due to potential glass particles in the bottle. There have been no reports of injuries. The number of bottles affected may be low, the LCB says. Potential damage during transportation and handling to glass stoppers in the bottle may have caused the presence of small particles of glass that could pose a health risk.   1800 Tequila in all other bottle sizes as well as 1800 Tequila Anejo, Select Silver and 1800 Ultimate Margarita are not impacted. Customers are encouraged to check to see if they have affected products by comparing the first nine digits of the 13-digit Lot Code on the side of the…

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State Stores Not as Profitable as Pa. Says

Financials show that Pa. consistently overestimates how much LCB can remit to Treasury

By Jared Sichel | PA Independent HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s politicians may be saddling the state-owned liquor monopoly with obligations that it can’t long fulfill. As two separate GOP privatization plans — one in the House and one in the Senate — lay in wait, public documents make clear that the state has consistently overestimated how much the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, or PLCB, can afford to remit to the Treasury. Financial statements made public by the PLCB and examined by PA Independent show that between the three fiscal years of 2008-09 and 2010-11, the Governor’s Budget Office and Legislature under former Gov. Ed Rendell, overestimated by $49.2 million how much in profits Pennsylvania’s 600 liquor stores could transfer to …

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Hurricane Irene

Salisbury: Photos of the Storm

Salisbury Patch readers, send us your photos of the storm.

Editor's note: Patch will be covering the impact of the storm throughout the weekend. Please share your photos and observations by commenting, uploading a photo to a published story or sending an e-mail to wendy.solomon@patch.com. Salisbury Patch wants to know wha thte storm looks like through the eyes of our readers, from your preparation to what, if any, damage your residence sustains. You can add your photos to the history-making compilation in two ways:

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