In Wednesday's News Tribune, a Schulte's Fresh Foods ad features a 30-pack of Busch beer for $17.79.
What the ad doesn't tell you is whether that's the everyday price or a sale.
That's because in Missouri, state regulations don't allow the advertising of discounts/promotions/sales/comparison pricing with alcohol products.
It's a post-Prohibition regulation that may have been intended to decrease alcohol-related problems. But with the legalization of alcohol and the legal right to advertise it, the Clydesdale horse already is out of the barn, so to speak.
The ability or inability to advertise sales likely would have a negligible effect on alcohol problems. Lifting the ban would benefit the free marketplace and, ultimately, consumers who could more easily compare prices.
But the primary reason the ban should be lifted is because it is an issue of freedom of speech - in this case, commercial free speech. Multiple courts already have ruled on this matter, specifically regarding such limitations on advertising.
A bill gaining traction in the final weeks of this legislative session would fix the problem.
Among other things, House Bill 433 "authorizes retailers of intoxicating liquor or beer to offer and advertise coupons, premiums, prizes, rebates, and other promotional programs of any type to consumers as an inducement to purchase alcoholic or nonalcoholic merchandise, so long as no advertisement for intoxicating liquor or beer contains a price that is below the retailer's actual cost."
The bill has passed the House, and we urge the Senate to do the same.
David Overfelt, president of the Missouri Retailers Association, points out the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in January reversed a lower court and reinstated a lawsuit alleging Missouri's alcohol laws and regulations violate the constitutional guarantee of free speech.
The court noted "multiple inconsistencies within the regulations "
Why wait for the courts to throw them out?
To us, this has less to do with alcohol or advertising than it does free speech. As former U.S. Sen. Christoper Dodd said: "When the public's right to know is threatened, and when the rights of free speech and free press are at risk, all of the other liberties we hold dear are endangered."