CDC: Sunday Alcohol Sales Public Health Concern

ATLANTA - Sunday alcohol sales are closer to being a reality after a proposal took a legislative leap forward.

The new bill would give the decision-making power to local communities.

With another Super Bowl Sunday just days away, here in Georgia it will be another Sunday QT coolers will be dark.

"On Super Bowl Sunday in Georgia, if you want to purchase an alcohol beverage you have to go to a bar and watch the game," said Jim Tudor of the Georgia Association of Convenience Stores.

But after years of the threat of a veto, Sunday alcohol sales moved a giant step closer at the Georgia General Assembly with a 6-1 vote in a senate committee to move a bill along allowing individual communities to decide on Sunday sales.

"Not a single sale in Georgia will occur. Not a single sale. All it will allow is local communities to vote on this," said Tudor.

But the head of the U.S. Center for Disease Control's alcohol program says their studies show allowing Sunday sales is a public health concern.

"The science is very strong and very clear that if you make alcohol more available, in this case sales on Sunday, you're going to get increase in alcohol use and increase in harms related to it," said Dr. Robert Brewer of the CDC.

It's the same point religious groups argued in the past, but those same groups are now silent most likely because Governor Nathan Deal has said he won't oppose the legislation.

Jim Tudor represents 2,500 convenience stores and says the current law hurts business.

"It's one, being able to take care of our customers and two, not to lose business to other states," said Tudor.

"For some people that may be an inconvenience but I think that has to be balanced against an increase in motor vehicle crashes crash deaths, interpersonal violence," said Brewer.

Georgia is one of three states that does not allow alcohol sales on Sundays and the only one in the south.