RD392 - 2012 Annual Report of the Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC)


Executive Summary:
ABC completed Fiscal Year 2012 with a record $734 million in annual gross sales, up $41 million from the previous year. Retail dollars are up 6.5 percent, and sales to mixed beverage licensees (restaurants) are up 4.9 percent from last year. Three new stores that opened this year generated $1,184,524 in sales.

In Fiscal Year 2012, ABC collected nearly $121 million in excise taxes; more than $33 million in wine liter taxes, more than $29 million in general sales taxes, more than $43 million in malt beverage taxes and $132 million in profit transfers for a total of $359,746,269 in transfers. ABC has contributed $1.7 billion dollars to the Commonwealth in the last five years.

Special agents from the agency’s Bureau of Law Enforcement monitor compliance in licensed establishments statewide. During the fiscal year, ABC special agents conducted 9,647 criminal investigations, made 1,811 arrests, and completed 690 written warnings and 716 written violation reports for administrative action against licenses. ABC agents take an active role in promoting compliance. They trained 1,508 participants in the Responsible Sellers and Servers: Virginia’s Program (RSVP) statewide this fiscal year.

In Fiscal Year 2012, the Hearings, Appeals and Judicial Services Division received 765 cases for processing. The division collected $876,769.99 in civil penalties during the fiscal year.

ABC continues to be a leader in alcohol prevention and community education initiatives. The agency provided more than $117,000 dollars in grant funding to enhance community and university coalitions in Fiscal Year 2012. The Alcohol and Aging Awareness Group (AAAG) PSA reached three million citizens in Virginia.

New this year was the ABC-sponsored College Tour, a three-stop college program including Norfolk State, Longwood and George Mason universities. In its outreach to high school students, ABC attracted 340 youth participants from schools and communities across the commonwealth to its annual summer leadership conference, Youth Alcohol and drug Abuse Prevention Project (YADAPP).

ABC remains committed to the public safety of Virginia’s citizens, providing alcohol education for people of all ages; excellent customer service at each retail location; and generating a consistent source of revenue for the Commonwealth of Virginia.