Liquor Licenses in Dry Counties and Almost $1M in Missing Booze Discovered in This State’s Liquor Commission Audit

The Michigan Liquor Control Commission received a 67-page audit for 2022 that revealed almost $1 million in missing liquor. (Photo: Sipa via AP Images)

The Detroit Free Press reported on Tuesday that during an audit of the Michigan Liquor Control Commission, almost $1 million in booze was reported as missing from the state’s inventory in 2022.

Findings additionally included liquor licenses issued to restaurants and bars in “dry” jurisdictions.

Additionally, numerous cities, including Detroit, were found to have “far more” licensed establishments than state law permits.

These findings have raised some eyebrows, considering the outlet reported that the MLCC made $1.6 billion in revenue that same year.

So, what exactly does this mean for restaurants in cities like Detroit? According to the Detroit Free Press, it means that those interested in opening a restaurant with alcohol or a bar “must sometimes pay tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars to purchase a license from someone who already holds one.

The Detroit Free Press reported that after the audit was conducted by auditor George Ringler, the commission responded with claims that it would implement “better systems in place to correct the issues.”

But what about the missing alcohol?

It does not appear that someone made off with nearly $1 million in wine and spirits. Rather, it seems that the Michigan Liquor Control Commission’s inventory system wasn’t up to par, per the Detroit Free Press. The audit found that the MLCC allegedly did not keep track of physical inventory from October 2019 to July 2022, and those in charge claimed staffing shortages and COVID-19 restrictions were to blame.

The audit reported in January 38,245 bottles were labeled as missing, with a value of almost $600,000. Less than a month later in February, 31% of a total of 78,100 bottles — or slightly over 24,000 — were declared missing. The amount of missing inventory had a value of slightly over $366,000 lending to a $966,000 total of missing inventory.

“MLCC subsequently processed a refund from the vendors for 62,294 bottles missing from ADA warehouses,” a report read.

The MLCC wouldn’t be the first state regulative liquor board to face some issues.

In May, the Virginia ABC faced some scrutiny after what apparently was referred to as a “botched” lottery that would allow residents to purchase rare whiskeys, including expressions from Buffalo Trace’s coveted Antique Collection and William Larue Weller Bourbon.

The results led to accusations of the lottery being rigged, as two participants won the chance to purchase all four bottles and 50 individuals were allowed to purchase three of the four.

“Virginia ABC has found no evidence of inappropriate administration of the lottery drawing or intentional manipulation by staff or customers,” the ABC claimed.

As for the Michigan Liquor Control Commission, the organization appears to agree with the findings of the 67-page report and plans to improve its operations in the future.

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