Commentary: North Carolina Needs a Study Commission on ABC Liquor Laws Reform and THC Reform
By Joyce Kohn Sullivan, CEO, Free Our Spirits NC
North Carolina’s alcohol laws and its fast-growing market for intoxicating hemp-derived THC products pose different questions, but they share one urgent problem: state policy has not kept pace with consumers, businesses, public-safety concerns, or the marketplace.
The General Assembly has debated major proposals, yet broad ABC reform remains unresolved and comprehensive THC safeguards have not become law. That record should not end the conversation. It should start a better one.
Free Our Spirits NC urges legislative leaders to create a bipartisan study commission before the next long session. Its charge should be practical and transparent: examine the structure, costs, accountability, and consumer experience of the ABC system; compare reforms adopted elsewhere; and identify options that promote competition and convenience without weakening responsible sales or local revenue.
The same commission should evaluate clear, enforceable rules for hemp-derived THC. North Carolinians deserve age restrictions, accurate labeling, independent testing, child-resistant packaging, sensible potency and serving standards, responsible marketing, licensing, inspections, and meaningful penalties for bad actors. Legitimate businesses also deserve predictable rules that distinguish responsible operators from sellers who put consumers and the industry at risk.
This work cannot happen behind closed doors. The commission should hold hearings across the state and hear from voters, local ABC boards, hospitality businesses, distillers, retailers, public-health experts, law enforcement, parents, agriculture interests, and THC manufacturers. It should review data on enforcement, youth access, impaired driving, tax collections, consumer demand, and economic opportunity, then deliver specific recommendations and draft legislation on a firm deadline.
Legislative stalemate is not a strategy.
When repeated efforts fail, lawmakers should gather better evidence, build broader trust, and define the choices plainly. A serious study commission would give citizens a voice and legislators a workable path toward modernizing alcohol policy while strengthening oversight of intoxicating THC products. North Carolina should use the coming months to do the homework, forge consensus, and return ready to act.
