WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court appears ready to strike down a Tennessee provision that requires people to live in the state for two years before obtaining a license to sell alcohol.
Several justices said the restriction unconstitutionally discriminates against out-of-state economic interests, despite strong state interests in regulating liquor sales.
A ruling invalidating the residency requirement would be a victory for a family that bought a Memphis liquor store and moved to Tennessee from Utah in search of a healthier climate for their disabled adult daughter.
Justice Neil Gorsuch was among justices who worried that getting rid of the residency law would be help enable online alcohol sales with no state regulation. Gorsuch told a lawyer for a chain of stores that “you want to be the Amazon of liquor.”
