Blue laws are legislation regulating activities associated with the Sabbath (Sunday). In the Bible, the Sabbath, or holy day, is a day of rest. Blue laws got their name from 17th-century laws in Connecticut, which were written on blue paper. Some of the early laws included:
• No one shall cross a river on the Sabbath but authorized clergymen.
• No one shall travel, cook victuals, make beds, sweep houses, cut hair, or shave on the Sabbath Day.
• No one shall kiss his or her children on the Sabbath or feasting days.
• The Sabbath Day shall begin at sunset on Saturday.
Most blue laws have been eliminated based on questions of their constitutionality, economics, and practicality. Constitutional challenges are usually based on the First Amendment, which states, “Congress shall make no laws respecting the establishment of religion.” Economic realities and lost sales and tax revenues have also pressured governments into repealing blue laws. Some southern states, particularly South Carolina, retain bluelaw restrictions. Title 53, Chapter 1, Section 53-1-40 of the State of South Carolina Code of Laws reads in part: “On the first day of the week, commonly called Sunday, it shall be unlawful for any person to engage in worldly work, labor, business of his ordinary calling or the selling or ordering to sell publicly or privately or by telephone, at retail or at wholesale to the consumer any goods, wares or merchandise or to employ others to engage in work, labor or business or selling or offering to sell any goods, wares or merchandise, excepting work of necessity or charity.” The act does allow the Sunday sale of tobacco, motor fuels, novelties, souvenirs, undergarments, and the operation of public eating places, funeral homes, and cemeteries. Most Americans never encounter blue laws. Those who do are usually shocked or bemused to find they cannot purchase liquor in some southern states on Sundays. In South Carolina, counties can vote to overrule blue laws, and in most regions of the state where tourism is a significant source of INCOME, blue laws have been repealed or modified.