Repeal of Prohibition
21st Amendment to the United States Constitution
What does the Repeal of Prohibition mean?
The Twenty-First Amendment repealed the Eighteenth Amendment, ending Prohibition. It is the only amendment that has repealed another amendment and the only amendment ratified by state ratifying conventions rather than state legislatures.
Source: U.S. Const. amend. 21
Original Text
“Section 1. The eighteenth article of amendment to the Constitution of the United States is hereby repealed. Section 2. The transportation or importation into any State, Territory, or possession of the United States for delivery or use therein of intoxicating liquors, in violation of the laws thereof, is hereby prohibited.”
Plain-English Explanation
The Twenty-First Amendment repealed the Eighteenth Amendment, ending Prohibition. It is the only amendment that has repealed another amendment and the only amendment ratified by state ratifying conventions rather than state legislatures.
Section 2 gives states broad authority to regulate the importation and sale of alcohol within their borders, creating a unique constitutional grant of state regulatory power that has been interpreted to give states significant latitude in their alcohol regulation, though not unlimited power to discriminate against interstate commerce.
Key Doctrines
Landmark Cases
Granholm v. Heald
(2005)Held that the Twenty-First Amendment does not authorize states to discriminate against out-of-state wine producers, ruling that state laws allowing in-state wineries to ship directly to consumers while prohibiting out-of-state wineries from doing so violate the Commerce Clause.
Tennessee Wine & Spirits Retailers Association v. Thomas
(2019)Held that the Twenty-First Amendment does not shield state alcohol regulations from Commerce Clause scrutiny, striking down Tennessee's durational residency requirement for retail liquor store licenses.
Exam Relevance
The Twenty-First Amendment is relevant in Commerce Clause and federalism discussions. Know that Section 2 gives states significant but not unlimited power to regulate alcohol, and that discriminatory state alcohol laws remain subject to Commerce Clause scrutiny.
Modern Applications
- Direct-to-consumer alcohol shipping regulations and e-commerce
- State three-tier distribution systems and craft brewery regulations
- Interstate commerce challenges to state alcohol monopolies
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