Delaware lawmakers look to tackle direct wine shipment ban
DELAWARE – Delawareans can currently get just about anything shipped right to their front doors except wine. It’s an issue some lawmakers plan to tackle this upcoming legislative session.
“We really need to do what’s best for Delaware consumers and our constituencies by starting to open up these laws,” State Representative Jeff Spiegelman said.
Delaware is one of three states in country that doesn’t allow direct shipment of wine.
House Bill 262 looks to establish a direct-to-consumer wine sales system with certain conditions. Wineries would have to obtain a license to ship and pay the same sales tax on alcohol as retail stores. “We need to start need to start entering this millennia in terms of what we can do to help those small businesses,” Rep. Spiegelman said.
“They get introduced to the business. When they’re down here at the beach, they’re going to come in and we’ve created a new customer right? They’re going to stop here,” Raley-Ward said.
Peggy Raley-Ward owns of Nassau Valley Vineyard & Winery in Lewes and supports this legislation. She told 47ABC that one of the big reasons why the bill has yet to cross the finish line is the fear that sales could be impacted for bigger distribution stores.
Contrary to belief, she said the cost to ship a product would make that impossible. “Normal, everyday people are not logically going to add $18-20 a bottle for something they want to order. You’re not going to do that every day of the week so you’re not going to cut into any retail trade,” she said.
Despite there not being a legal means in place, Raley-Ward said that illegal shipments are already happening. “To assume that you’re going to curb the problem and stop it is naive. It’s going to continue to happen, the question is whether or not people want to be able to provide a legal means to do it and the state of Delaware to make a revenue,” she said.
Other conditions under the bill include shipments being specially labeled and packaging must be signed by adults 21 years of age or older. There would also be a limit of three cases of wine a year per household.
The Delaware General Assembly’s 2024 legislative session begins next month.
