House lawmakers are scheduled to vote this week on a bill that would lift a 25-year-old ban on advertising alcohol on billboards in New Hampshire.
The state Senate approved the bill in March, and supporters say it’s simply a matter of free speech.
Alcohol can already be advertised on TV, in newspapers, and on the radio, so why not billboards?
The most vigorous objections have actually come from the state’s beer industry.
Executive Director of the Beer Distributors of New Hampshire Scott Schaier says lifting the ban would hurt the state’s image.
He also says it could be bad for small, local businesses.
“So if a bunch of global national liquor beer wine advertisers start dumping money into the state, supply and demand is going to cause the price for small businesses to go up and they may effectively be priced out of the market.
The bill is scheduled to go before House lawmakers on Wednesday.
It comes with a narrow, 8-7 vote from the Commerce and Consumer Affairs Committee recommending the proposal be killed.
