( cades ago and those in favor of scrapp...)Senate assures ban on smoking,Health

cades ago, and those in favor of scrapping the Sunday liquor law argued it was unfair to restrict liquor stores when other retailers were allowed to operate on Sundays. They predict that ending the prohibition will increase the state's annual sales tax revenue by about $1.8 million.

But many Massachusetts mom-and-pop liquor store owners opposed the change, saying it will create pressure for them to work on what is now their only day off, according to the 700-member strong Massachusetts Package Stores Association. Some religious leaders also are loath to give up one of the last laws that distinguishes Sunday from other days.

In 1990, the Massachusetts Legislature relaxed alcohol rules to allow Sunday sales between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day and in cities and towns within 10 miles of New Hampshire and Vermont, which permit Sunday sales. Border legislators determined to preserve that competitive advantage helped doom a House attempt to lift the ban last month. But the measure was presented as a separate bill, and the idea's inclusion in a broader measure helped push it through last night.

"Modernizing the marketplace by allowing Sunday sales will bring consumers more convenience and the state more tax revenue," said David Wojnar of the Washington-based Distilled Spirits Council, which lobbied heavily for the measure.

In other action, legislative leaders delayed action on a property tax bill pushed by Mayor Thomas M. Menino of Boston and other local officials. Menino and his aides had lobbied furiously for the bill, arguing that without it, the average Boston homeowner would see an $800 property tax increase next year. As many as 50 other communities around the state also would benefit from the measure, which would allow cities to raise commercial tax rates beyond the current limits to deal with a rare divergence between residential property values, which are going up, and stagnant commercial values.


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