Markup on wine, liquor prices sought in Pa.

    The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board’s finance director is calling for the agency’s markup on liquor and wine to increase for the first time in two decades.

    In an internal memo obtained by The Associated Press, August Hehemann said the agency’s net income is expected to shrink in the fiscal year that started July 1, to $96 million from $121 million in the previous year.

    Hehemann proposes that the markup be raised from 30 percent to 35 percent to offset double-digit increases in expenses such as pensions, health care and computer upgrades.

    Chairman Joseph “Skip” Brion said the three-member board has privately discussed Hehemann’s analysis, but that there’s no proposal before the board to increase the markup. Any such action would be a last resort, he said.

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