A group of winemakers and retailers cast doubt this week on the future of a house bill that would allow larger winemakers to ship wine to Massachusetts consumers.
House Bill 1029 remains in committee nine months after the lawmakers from the Joint Committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure heard testimony on the bill, according to Free the Grapes, a coalition based in Napa, Calif.
Massachusetts is in a minority of states that don’t allow direct shipping of wine to consumers. The coalition said 37 states and Washington, D.C., allow the practice. Free the Grapes also said the bill conforms with a 2010 First Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruling that found a state law banning winemakers who produce more than 30,000 gallons of wine per year from shipping to Massachusetts consumers to be discriminatory.
The bill would require wineries to purchase state-issued shipping licenses, require an adult’s signature upon delivery and limit quantities shipped to each consumer at 24 cases per year.
