An effort to allow beer and wine sales in grocery stores suffered a setback in the Senate this week that may spell an end to efforts to pass the measure for the 2025 session.
The Senate Finance Committee was poised Tuesday to kill Senate Bill 824 when its sponsor, Sen. Cory McCray (D-Baltimore City), asked at the last minute that the bill be withdrawn, said Senate Finance Chair Pamela Beidle (D-Anne Arundel).
“There was no support in my committee for it,” Beidle said of the bill, one of two proposed this session that would open beer and wine sales to retailers other than traditional liquor stores. The decision to pull the bill means Maryland will likely remain one of four states where grocers are prohibited from selling beer and wine.
McCray’s bill — a scant two pages — is a pared-down version of a House proposal. McCray’s bill would simply have removed the prohibition on issuing a Class A beer, wine and liquor license to a grocery store, chain store or warehouse retailer. McCray said that while his withdrawal of his bill “may seem like a setback, the conversation is far from over.”
“Notably, the Harris Teeter at McHenry Row in South Baltimore operates an attached beer and wine store, reflecting consumer demand for such conveniences,” he said Wednesday. “Before more grocers pursue individual solutions, it’s imperative for the legislature to proactively establish a clear, equitable framework that balances consumer convenience with the interests of small businesses and local communities. This issue is pressing, and I anticipate it will be a focal point in upcoming legislative sessions.”
Jack Milani, owner of Monaghan’s Pub in western Baltimore County and legislative co-chair of the Maryland Licensed Beverage Association, said he was pleased to see McCray’s bill pulled.
“We appreciate the members of the General Assembly for hearing the concerns of small businesses from across the state of Maryland about this legislation,” Milani said.
Gov. Wes Moore (D) in December backed the change and said he expected the legislature to put a bill “on my desk at the end of the session,” citing what he described as the overwhelming popularity of allowing beer and wine primarily in grocery stores.
A Moore spokesperson was not immediately available for comment on the Senate bill’s withdrawal.
The rare backing by a governor gave hope to supporters, including the Maryland Retailers Association. The trade group has long sought to wedge itself into a three-tiered system of alcohol wholesalers, distributors and retailers that dates back to the end of Prohibition in Maryland.
“We’re confident that it’s only a matter of time before this commonsense policy becomes law like it has in 46 other states,” said Cailey Locklair, president of the Maryland Retailers Association. “We’re continuing to have conversations with lawmakers about how to move it forward.”
Opponents express concerns about wider access to alcohol and the social ills they said would follow if the bill passed. Others, including the powerful licensed beverage industry, said the effort would drive mom-and-pop stores out of business.
A more complicated House bill remains alive — if only technically— in the House Economic Matters Committee.
Efforts to move the House bill are running out of time. A key date to move bills to the opposite chamber is less than two weeks away. Failing a committee vote to move it to full House or dispatch it for the session, the bill edges closer to ending the session free falling into the abyss of a committee drawer.
House Bill 1379 faces an uphill battle to make it out of committee. Even if it could, passage in the Senate is seen as unlikely given the fate of the McCray bill.
The bill, sponsored by Del. Marlon Amprey (D-Baltimore City) also would expand beer and wine sales to grocers and other retailers. The five-page bill included restrictions on where new retailers could be located and set other restrictions.
Amprey also proposed an additional tax on sales at those new retailers that would fund incentives to coax grocers into underserved communities. In many cases, those communities already have wider availability of alcohol.
Amprey did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
House Economic Matters Chair C.T. Wilson, who opposes the bill, said his committee has not scheduled a vote on the bill.
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