Enlarge Library of Congress via AFP/Getty Images New York City's Deputy Police Commissioner John Leach, at right, watches in 1921 as illegal liquor is poured into a sewer following a Prohibition raid.

Celebrations of the 1933 ratification of the 21st Amendment, which ended the country's dry spell, are planned in San Francisco, Boston, New York, Washington, D.C., and elsewhere.

The milestone comes at a time when a growing number of states and municipalities are relaxing Sunday alcohol sales restrictions.

Colorado repealed its Sunday sales ban in March, becoming the 13th state to do so since 2002, according to Ben Jenkins, spokesman for Distilled Spirits Council of the United States.

New York and Virginia expanded Sunday sales laws this year, Jenkins said. New York made a 2004 temporary allowance for Sunday sales permanent, and Virginia expanded its law to allow sales in cities with 100,000 people or more. Previously, the cutoff had been 200,000, he said.

According to Alcohol Policy Information System (APIS), a project conducted by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, states have been reconsidering bans "with a particular focus on their impact on tax revenues and economic activity."

Colorado Sen. Jennifer Veiga, a Democrat and a sponsor of the state's repeal bill, said that she supported it for consumer convenience. But, she said, "the information we had at this time showed that it would generate additional revenues."

Some contest the benefits.

Carroll Hughes, executive director of the Connecticut Package Stores Association, where the Sunday ban remains, says lifting it could cost anywhere from $13,000 to $70,000 — depending on the size of the store — in labor and energy costs.

"The increase in expenses will result in the loss of as many as 200 of our 1,000 stores in Connecticut, in lower sales and a loss of jobs as well as revenue," he said.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving CEO Charles Hurley said the organization does not oppose the responsible sale of alcohol, as long as states protect the public.

"Sunday sales is a side issue, it's not what's killing people," he said. "The way to reduce fatalities from alcohol is not necessarily to restrict sales, except for those under 21."

In addition to Connecticut, over a dozen other states, from Alabama to Utah, continue to ban the sale of liquor on Sundays, according to APIS.

People marking the anniversary can lift a glass to Utah, which became the 36th state to ratify the 21st amendment, on Dec. 5, 1933, giving the measure the necessary three-fourths majority of states' approval. Prohibition became law in 1919. It remains the only constitutional amendment to be repealed.