Mayor Gavin Newsom vetoed the fee on alcohol, Supervisor John Avalos' plan to charge booze wholesalers to help cover the city's costs to care for dunkards. The mayor's office sent out a press release with the following title, "Mayor Vetoes Unnecessary Alcohol Fee to Protect Jobs, San Francisco's Economy, which in part read:
I cannot support this unnecessary and harmful new fee that will hurt our City's economy and cost us jobs at a time when we most need them," the mayor wrote. "It is in these times of struggle that we need to stimulate our local economy - not pursue policies that will stifle growth and put our county at a competitive disadvantage with every other county in California
Newsom's veto could be seen as odd on his part, especially since Newsom, who had sex with his best friend and colleague's wife during the now-famous the Rippey-Tourk affair, revealed he was an alcoholic and checked into alcohol rehab.
But the booze fee may not be over yet. After Tuesday's veto, Avalos said he wants to take it to the voters. "Maybe we go to the ballot," Supervisor John Avalos told the Chronicle. "There's a lot of people who think this a good idea."