An annual report providing the latest data from the control states. By Richard Brandes
f the beverage alcohol business in the control states were a barometer of the entire U.S. economy, then we'd be well on the way to a thriving economic environment with healthy growth complemented by decreasing costs, the seemingly magical ingredients that every community worldwide is striving for these days. The actual details are these: control state agencies continue to deliver dollar and volume growth, even in an overall sluggish to moderately growing economy. And state governments continue to benefit from the revenue increases contributed to the control states from their beverage alcohol operations. At the same time, decreasing financial expenditures and tightened budgets have reduced the operational costs of the control states overall, with productivity and efficiency gains allowing agencies to, once again, stretch their resources. This is the 16th consecutive year that StateWays is presenting its annual review of the financial progress being made throughout the control states, providing an overview of the beverage alcohol business. This is based on reports from all 19 control jurisdictions [including Washington State, for the last time, whose retail and
StateWays s www.stateways.com s November/December 2012
wholesale operations ceased as of June 1, 2012], and we're grateful to the control state agencies and personnel who provided extensive information to help us compile this annual report. Our data details state-by-state dollar sales, revenue contribution, distilled spirits and wine (where applicable) sales volume, operating expenses, and the numbers of types of outlets and employees in the sys- tem. We've also included projected sales volumes and revenue contributions for the Fiscal Year 2013. Where appropriate, we've published brief descriptions of any additional circumstances a state would like to provide that might amplify what is going on in a state's beverage alcohol operation. In addition to this individual state information, we've ranked the jurisdictions based on their total sales and aggregated some key statistics to give an overall sense of the growth and size of business throughout the control states.
Meanwhile, the privatization hawks have not flown
away, with Washington State now serving, essentially, as the canary in the coal mine. Other states are watching closely while considering just how far they might tilt toward a privatized model. Interestingly, as we went to
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