The U.S. Supreme Court is likely to overhaul the state regulation of retail alcoholic beverage licenses when it decides whether the state of Tennessee may limit the granting of liquor licenses only to individuals who have resided in state for 2 years or more. Many states and even counties have similar suspect restrictions, including Maryland.
It is difficult to comprehend what new liquor licensing laws could possibly be required in Maryland in 2017 after the legislature passed the largest bill in Maryland history last year, some 3,180 pages long, codifying alcoholic beverage laws.
But as the just concluded 437th session of the Maryland General Assembly, began in the City of Annapolis on the eleventh day of January 2017, and ending on the tenth day of April 2017, more than 2,881 bills were introduced of which more than 361 bills were enacted, including more than a few that will provide business opportunities for those engaging in the sale of alcoholic beverages. This post is a compilation of those bills.
For the past several years, craft brewers in the State have backed legislation to increase the amount of beer they may sell for on-premises consumption in their taprooms. They have been opposed by beer wholesalers and retailers, who have feared that their businesses would suffer as a result. Of the several bills on these issues, the sides reached agreement on House Bill 1283 (passed) that applies to all Class 5 breweries, which include both small craft breweries and a large Guinness brewery scheduled to open in Baltimore County. Note, the bill does not apply to pub-breweries, micro-breweries, or farm breweries.
The bill increases, from 500 barrels to 2,000 barrels, the amount of beer a Class 5 brewery may sell for on-premises consumption each year. The brewer may apply for permission to sell an additional 1,000 barrels per year, provided any beer sold in excess of the 2,000 barrels is first purchased by the brewer from a licensed wholesaler. The bill also authorizes a Class 5 brewery to contract to brew and bottle beer with and on behalf of another Class 5 brewery or holder of a Class 2 rectifying license, Class 7 micro-brewery license, Class 8 farm brewery license, or nonresident dealer’s permit. Contract beer that is sold for on-premises consumption at a Class 5 brewery may not exceed the greater of 25% of the total number of barrels of beer sold annually for on-premises consumption or 1.2% of total finished production under the Class 5 brewery license. Also, the bill alters the hours during which the sales and serving privileges of an on-site consumption permit may be exercised for specified Class 5 breweries. For license holders who obtain an on-site consumption permit after April 1, 2017, the hours of sale for on-site consumption extend from 10 a.m. until 10 p.m., Monday through Sunday. Class 5 breweries, who obtained licenses before April 1, 2017, are exempt from the bill’s stated hours of sale and will continue to operate under the longer hours established in each local jurisdiction.
Continue Reading New Alcoholic Beverage Laws from the 2017 Session of the Maryland Legislature