Idaho Making Profit from Washington Booze Buyers

STATE LINE, Idaho (AP) — The State Line Liquor Store is just across the border in Idaho, and has become a major destination for booze buyers from Washington.

The store opened a few months after Washington voters passed Initiative 1183, which two years ago privatized liquor sales in Washington.

KXLY-TV of Spokane reports that since then, officials in Kootenai County, Idaho, have seen an increase of $7 million in liquor sales each year.

The Idaho State Liquor Division says Kootenai County had the highest growth in the state.

The prices keep customers coming back. A price check for a fifth of Black Velvet on either side of the border, showed it costs $10 in Idaho and $16 in Washington.