Shipping to MA

MA. House approved direct shipping. I'm still not holding my breath.


BOSTON — Massachusetts lawmakers are backing a measure that would allow winemakers to ship their products directly to the state's consumers.

The House proposal was added as an amendment to the state's $36.2 billion state budget for the July 1 fiscal year.

Former New England Patriots quarterback Drew Bledsoe, who operates a winery in Washington state, came to the Statehouse last year to urge passage of a similar bill. Bledsoe said the state's ban on direct shipments made it nearly impossible to sell his wine in Massachusetts.

The state is one of about a dozen that bans or restricts direct wine shipments to consumers.

The measure would require wineries to purchase a shipping license and bar delivery to anyone under the age of 21.

It must also pass the Senate.

vutai

[Jenise]

Is it the church ladies who are standing in the way, or does some lobby have your legislators by the short hairs? For a state that was so progressive about health care, this 'dark ages' ban on wine shipping doesn't seem in character. (Btw, welcome to WLDG.)

The barrier here is the wine importers/wholesalers lobby. These days the liquor wholesale market in Massachusetts is an oligopoly--today there are only a handful of firms at the wholesale tier, whereas back in the 1980s there were dozens. And they have the legislature in their back pockets. Remember we're talking about the state that pretty much invented political corruption.

-Paul W.