From left : David Jackson , J . Neal Insley , Carmen Ford , and Eddie Wirt .
From left : Fred Wooton , Tim Holden and Becky Schlauch .
The annual NABCA Board Panel Discussion included control state leaders from across the country in an important discussion about issues affecting everybody .
Editor-at-Large Geoff Colvin asked Mullen what the greatest threats to America are , external and internal . For the former , Mullen brought up our escalating conflicts with China and Russia , and the prospect of a globally devastating war with either .
Speaking towards the latter , Mullen said , “ I ’ m hugely concerned about the state of our Democracy in America . We ’ ve got to get away from yelling at each other all the time . It ’ s going to take courageous leaders coming forward to make compromises to solve our deeply divided issues like gun violence , immigration and our national debt .” “ I do not know how we ’ re going to deal with $ 30 trillion in debt ,” he added . The conference wrapped up its panels with a seven-person “ Control State Forum ” that included leaders from across the country and generations . Moderator and NABCA CEO Neal Insley inquired into challenges currently facing the control model . All panelists agreed on one issue : staffing .
“ Trying to find people who will stay more than five years is difficult now , because the younger generations are going to job hop a lot more than the people in tenured positions ,” said Chris Graham , Commissioner , Mississippi of Dept . of Revenue . Which creates complications when those tenured employees retire or leave . “ The loss of institutional knowledge is a big problem ,” said Brenda Henson , Director , Wyoming Department of Revenue . “ We have employees in our commission who have been there for 20-plus years . They started in warehouse and then moved into accounting and now are in compliance . They ’ ve worked in multiple departments and have a better understanding of how all the departments work together , and what their individual needs are .”
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Replacing people with that level and depth of experience is extremely difficult in today ’ s era of employees frequently switching jobs and industries . Regardless of current challenges , however , all panelists agreed that control states remain a critical part of public safety .
“ The public goes along with the control state model , because we know that if they didn ’ t , they ’ d be telling their legislators to clamp down on it ,” said Pat Gagliardi , of the Michigan Liquor Control Commission . “ If we can continue to keep people safe and do it right , so that you can feel safe opening beer , wine or spirits in this country — and we know it ’ s not true around the world — if we want to continue growing this industry , then we have got to promote safety .”
Perhaps this is also key to addressing the staffing issue . In an earlier panel , “ Purpose vs . Profit ,” Paul Kaspszak , Executive Director at the Minnesota Municipal Beverage Association , made the case .
“ People in today ’ s workforce are looking for something bigger , they ’ re looking for a reason to get out of bed in the morning ,” he said . “ That ‘ something ’ is what we do . We ’ re making a positive societal impact . That ’ s a huge advantage for us in competition and in making employees happy .”
As always , control states must communicate this positive impact , in terms of public safety and financial contributions , so that citizens understand the benefit of the model .
“ One tagline we ’ re picked up on is , ‘ Pouring Profits into Communities ’,” Kaspszak said . “ Some of our members were weary of this at first . Now they wear t-shirts with that tagline printed on it .”•
StateWays | www . stateways . com | Fall 2023