The hospitality industry in Texas annually generates billions of dollars of economic activity and tax revenue and is responsible for hundreds of thousands of jobs.

In July 2008, for example, the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) collected $17.85 million in beverage alcohol taxes in the following categories: distilled spirits, $6.5 million; wine $828,000; and beer and ale, $10.5 million.

Texas economist Dr. Ray Perryman has determined business activity associated with the beverage alcohol industry (wine, beer and distilled spirits) in Texas is:

- $36.6 billion in annual spending (direct and indirect spending)
- $19.2 billion in annual output – The beverage alcohol industry in Texas increases our state's Gross State Product by $19.2 billion.
- More than 300,000 jobs (direct and indirect)
- Nearly $2.1 billion in state taxes and more than $600 million in local taxes.

And, the distilled spirits industry alone generates:

- $10.7 billion in annual spending
- $5.6 billion in annual output
- More than 90,000 jobs
- Nearly $600 million in state tax receipts and about $180 million in local taxes.

Hundreds of Texas localities have used local option elections to approve alcohol sales in their areas since 2004. Even when other factors such as income levels and general economic conditions are accounted for, there is still a significant increase in retail sales and reported sales taxes following a change from "dry" to "wet."

When wet areas are compared to dry areas, even after adjusting for income levels, retail sales in wet areas are higher than in dry locales. Thus, there are significant economic gains from moving an area from dry to wet. For example:

- A typical small community of 25,000 people having an income 10 percent below the state average can expect to generate $19 million in spending in the local economy, increase economic output by $10.8 million and create 185 jobs.
- The distilled spirits component for a small community are $5.8 million in spending, $3.3 million in economic output and 55 new jobs

- A town of 100,000 population with average income can expect to see an increase of $90 million in annual spending and an increase in economic output of almost $51 million while creating around 860 jobs.

- The distilled spirits component would be around $28 million in new spending, $15 million in economic output and 260 jobs

- A large community of 150,000 people and per capita income levels 20 percent above the Texas average would generate a projected $134 million in new spending and almost $80 million in new economic activity while creating almost 1,400 new jobs.

- The distilled spirits component would be $43 million in new spending, $25 million in economic output and 440 new jobs.

Modernizing local laws governing the sale and consumption of beverage alcohol offers communities the twin benefits of consumer convenience and increased sales tax revenue.

For example, sales tax revenue increased 29.66 percent in the cities that approved beverage alcohol sales in the Dallas-Forth Worth Metroplex. Sales taxes rose an anemic 1.12 percent in the six Metroplex cities that voted to stay "dry," which includes Cockrell Hill, Irving, Lancaster and Mesquite.

The increased sales tax revenue cannot be fully attributed to adult beverages, but the positive impact modernizing these laws has had on economic activity is undeniable.