Shelia Merck did not know what to expect when she joined the SC Venue Crisis fight and started raising awareness with citizens and legislators about the skyrocketing liability insurance costs, forcing small business owners to make very tough decisions about their businesses. But she quickly learned that her passion for these businesses, honky tonks, and other venues was shared by so many, not to mention the business owners themselves that have poured their dreams into these businesses. 

Now Shelia and the SC Venue Crisis team are holding town halls, organizing events, and being boots on the ground in the campaign to get South Carolina legislators to change the liability laws.  You can sign the petition HERE. 

"In 2017, South Carolina introduced a law, that drastically changed the minimum insurance coverage requirements for establishments that sell and serve alcohol. Bill 116 requires a one-million-dollar yearly policy. This rate increase is excessively high for an across-the-board requirement.

As a result, in 2021, insurance companies began to pull out of South Carolina. The number of available carriers has dropped so severely that we can count the remaining options on one hand. The inability to shop for insurance coverage caused the average insurance prices for bars and venues to rise in 2021. When 2022 hit, we were shocked to see the price quoted, which we had no choice but to pay. What was a $5,000 - $6,000 policy skyrocketed to upwards of $20,000- $25,000." -SC Venue Crisis Petition 

I can not stress how important conversations like this are, if you want things to change you have to let your voice be heard. As you will hear us discuss, the downstream effects of knee-jerk legislation can often have dire consequences on hard-working Americans.

But let’s jump into this conversation and if there is something similar happening in your state, please email me at chat@conversationmill.com; so we can talk more about grassroots movements happening at the local and state level.

SC Venue Crisis Instagram

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Hear more from our conversation at Substack. 

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