The Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority (Virginia ABC, or previously known as the Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control) is one of the eleven public safety agencies under the Secretariat of Public Safety and Homeland Security for the Commonwealth. The agency administers the state's ABC laws (created by the General Assembly). ABC stores are the only retail outlets in Virginia where customers may purchase distilled spirits. The profits that Virginia ABC contributes are collected from sales of distilled spirits at ABC stores, taxes collected on beer and wine sales, violation penalties and license fees. Since its establishment in 1934, Virginia ABC has contributed more than $9 billion to the Commonwealth's general fund. Virginia ABC employs more than 4,000 people statewide. History In response to the 21st amendment which repealed the 18th amendment relating to Prohibition, Virginia Governor John Garland Pollard called the Virginia General Assembly into special session to legalize 3.2 percent alcoholic beverages. The assembly met in Richmond on August 17, 1933. On October 3, 1933, in a special election, Virginia voted 99,640 to 58,518 to ratify the 21st amendment and 100,445 to 57,873 to devise a plan of liquor control to supersede state Prohibition. Delegates elected by the voters formally ratified the 21st amendment at a special convention held October 25, 1933, making Virginia the 29th state to ratify the 21st amendment. A committee responsible for recommending the best plan of liquor control for Virginia presented its report to the General Assembly in January 1934. The General Assembly voted to adopt the "liquor control plan" on March 22, 1934, creating the Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. The first three Virginia ABC Board members were T. McCall Frazier, S. Heth Tyler, and R. McCarthy Bullington. In 1936, the General Assembly granted full police powers to Virginia ABC's designated agents to assist local and federal officials enforce laws against bootlegging and moonshining. This permitted Virginia ABC to establish a force of investigators, who over time mounted campaigns against illegal liquor in Virginia. In 1991, a federal judge declared the ABC's ban on gay bars unconstitutional in the case French Quarter Cafe v. Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Board. In 2015, the General Assembly enacted a bill to convert Virginia ABC from an agency into an authority. Currently, there are 390 stores located throughout the Commonwealth, with 93 percent of Virginians living within 10 minutes of a retail store. Currently, the