Agenda - 02-17-2015 - 4a - Laserfiche WebLink

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Letter from the Chairman James C. Gardner In May 2014, 1 stood with Gov. Pat McCrory as he signed the Executive Order that created the statewide Task Force to Combat Substance Abuse and Underage Drinking. In July, Lt. Gov. Dan Forest and his wife, Alice, agreed to serve as ambassadors for the Initiative to Reduce Underage Drinking, which is authorized by the Governor's order. Even before we reached these important milestones, the ABC Commission had taken a leadership role and put in place the framework for a statewide awareness campaign that will roll out in the coming weeks and months. We have engaged a communications firm and conducted research to ensure that our message will resonate with children, and more important, with their parents. Early findings show that there is a big gap between what parents and children understand about underage drinking, and both are eager to communicate better with each other. In addition to the formative work on the Initiative, the ABC Commission also has raised awareness about issues of violence in private clubs. In September 2013, 1 sent a letter to the more than 1,000 businesses that operate as private clubs in North Carolina. My letter reminded them of the laws and regulations governing their businesses and put them on notice that incidents of violence will not be tolerated by the ABC Commission. The ABC Commission also has increased fines for violations and extended the period of time businesses receiving new permits remain on temporary status, which gives law enforcement agencies additional time to conduct thorough reviews of their operations. During the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2014, the ABC Commission issued nine summary suspensions of permanent ABC permits and denied 16 temporary permits on the basis of concerns about public safety at the locations. Operationally, the ABC Commission also has had a busy year, seeing increases in numbers of products sold and increases in revenues. Liquor shipments from the state warehouse totaled 5,193,612 cases, an increase of 3.57 percent. Revenues generated by ABC store retail sales totaled $869,111,881, an increase of 4.81 percent. The local ABC boards, their members and the employees who staff the 423 retail stores are to be thanked for this great result. And they too deserve recognition for the more than $10.5 million the local boards returned directly to their communities for alcohol education and treatment, the more than $7.4 million for alcohol law enforcement and the more than $57.5 million generated for local governments. I want to recognize and thank Commissioners Kevin Green and Joel Keith for their contriutions. I invite you to review the attached report for more information about the ABC Commission and the local ABC board results for fiscal year 2014. 1 am pleased to share these successes and the direction of the state's ABC Commission in 2014. And as we begin a new fiscal year, I am also pleased to report that we will be housed for administrative purposes within the Department of Public Safety. Although we remain an independent agency reporting directly to the Governor, this move aligns us with a team that always has been a strong partner for our regulatory mission. I believe the move is the right fit for the ABC Commission's focus going forward. STAT[ �Q. ►`� It D F J 9 ABC 1 r�0, x„ I C 0 M M I S S 1 0 N NORTH CAROLINA