Virginia ABC established (1934)
After Prohibition ended, Virginia created the Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority and became a control state. The state kept the power to sell liquor and to license anyone selling alcohol.
Virginia began operating state liquor stores and issuing licenses to restaurants and retailers.
For more than 90 years, the state has controlled who sells alcohol and where. That is why a Richmond restaurant needs a state license, not just a city permit.
Explains the mechanism behind this event: the Virginia ABC license is the state's gatekeeping tool for alcohol sales.
