An Act To Allow the Importation of Wine into the State for Individuals through Specific Ports of Entry
Maine Legislature, Session 124, LD 1308
Committee: Legal and Veterans Affairs
Sponsors: WEBSTER, BARTLETT, DILL, PINGREE, STRANG BURGESS, STUCKEY, TRINW ARD, MILLS
Amends: 28-A MRSA §1355, 28-A MRSA §1403-A, 36 MRSA §1754-B

MAINE STATE LEGISLATURE 
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124th 
INE LEGISLATURE 
FIRST REGULAR SESSIOt~-2009 
Legislative Document . 
No.130S 
H.P.911 
House of Representatives, March 31, 2009 
An Act To Allow the Importation of Wine into the State for 
Individuals through Specific Ports of Entry 
Reference to the Committee on Legal and Veterans Affairs suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Representative WEBSTER of Freeport. 
Cosponsored by Senator BARTLETT ofCllmberland and 
'71/~~ 1n.17!!IC~{ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives:CORNELL dll HOUX of Brllnswick, DILL of Cape Elizabeth, Speaker 
PINGREE ofNOlih Haven, STRANG BURGESS of Cumberland, STUCKEY of Portland, 
TRINW ARD of Waterville, S~nators: MA.RRACHE of Kennebec, MILLS of Somerset. 
Primed l11l rccycled pil~W' 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 28-A MRSA §1355,sub-§3, <;IE is enacted to read: 
. 
E.· A holder of a fann winery license may accept orders for wine to be shipped to a 
registered shipment outlet or licensee located within or outside the State by mail, 
telephone, Internet or any electronic or other means. . All wine orders shipped to 
another state are subject to the laws and regulations of the receiving state. As used in 
this paragraph, "outside the State" means any state other than Maine and any territory 
or possession of the United States, but does not include a foreign country. 
Sec. 2. 28-A MRSA §1403-A is enacted to read: 
§1403-A. Direct shipment of wine 
. 
1. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context othemise indicates, the 
following terms have the following meanings. 
A. "Direct shipper" means a winery that has obtained a wine direct shipper license 
under subsection 2. 
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B. 
"Outside the State" means any state other than Maine and any territory or 
possession of the United States, but does not include a foreign country. 
18. 
2. Directsliipment of wine. A winery holding a federal basic wine manufacturing 
permit located within or outside the State may obtain a wine direct shipper license by 
filing with the Liquor Licensing and Tax Division an application in a fonn detennined by 
. the bureau accompanied by an application fee of not more than $100 and a copy of the 
applicant's current federal basic wine manufacturing permit. 
. 
3. Direct shipper application. Before sending a· shipment to a registered shipment 
outlet, a direct shipper must file an application for a wine direct shipper license under 
subsection 2 with the bureau on a fonn issued by the bureau along with a true copy of its 
current alcoholic beverage license issued in this State or another state and a $100 
registration fee. 
4. Delivery to registered shipment outlet. Wine shipped pursuant to'this section 
may be shipped only to a registered shipment outlet. A licensee may register with the 
bureau as a registered shipment outlet in accordance with requirements and procedures 
established by rule by the bureau. All containers used for shipment of wine under this 
section must be conspicuously labeled by the direct shipper with the words "CONTAINS 
ALCOHOL: SIGNATURE OF PERSON 21 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER REQUIRED 
FOR DELIVERY." A 3rd-party carrier contracted by a direct shipper shall register with 
the bureau as a direct shipper carrier on a fonn provided by the bureau and shall include 
on the fonn a description of the carrier's practice for verifying that recipients of alcoholic 
beverage shipments are 21 years of age or older. 
5. Pick-up by consumer. A registered shipment outlet may release a delivery from 
a direct shipper only to a person 21 years of age or older for the recipient's personal use 
only and not for resale. A registered shipment outlet may release a delivery from a direct 
Page J - 124LRI492(OI)-1 
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shipper only to the person listed on the invoice or an adult member of the household, 
either of whom must provide a valid photo identificationdembnstrating proof of age. ' 
6. Bottle size and case limit A direct shipper may not ship a container of wine of 
less than 750 milliliters and may ship no more than 12 cases, each of which may contain 
no more than 9 liters or an equivalent volume, to anyone recipient address in a calendar 
year. 
7. License renewal. A direct shipper may annually renew its wine direct shipper 
license with the bureau by paying a $50 renewal fee and providing the bureau with a true 
copy of its current alcoholic beverage license issued in this State or another state .. 
8. Payment of state taxes. A direct shipper located outside of this State shall 
quarterly pay to the bureau all excise and premium taxes and to the Department of 
Administrative and Financial Services, Bureau of Revenue Services all sales taxes due on 
sales to residents of the State in the preceding quarter, the amount of such taxes to be 
calculated as if the sale were in the State. 
' 
9. Report. A direct shipper shall report to the bureau twice a year beginning January 
st of each year the name and address of each registered shipment outlet that received 
wine in the State, the total number of bottles shipped to each registered shipment outlet 
during the reporting period, the value of each shipment and the 3rd-party carrier used to 
deliver shipments of wine. Reports required by this subsection must be submitted on 
forms provided by the bureau. 
10. Audit. The bureau may perform an audit of a direct shipper's records relevant to 
compliance with this section. 
A direct shipper shall provide copIes of any records 
requested by the bureau within' 10 business days of that request. 
11. Violation. A direct shipper or 3rd-party carrier who delivers or causes to be 
delivered w·ine to a person who is not a registered shipment outlet commits a Class D 
crime. Direct shipment of wine without a wine direct shipper license under subsection 2 
constitutes a violation of the Maine Unfair Trade Practices Act. The bureau may suspend 
a wine direct shipper license for failure to comply with the shipment limits and reporting 
requirements required by this section. 'The bureau may revoke a wine direct shipper 
license for' subsequent failure to comply with the shipment limits and reporting 
requirements .. The bureau may accept payment of an offer in compromise in lieu of 
suspension; such payments must be determined by rule adopted by the bureau. 
12. Adoption of rules. The bureau shall adopt rules to carry out the purposes of this' 
section, including but not limited to rules requiring specific labeling and registration 
requirements for direct shippers in order to ensure compliance with the laws governing 
alcoholic' beverage containers' in Title 32, chapter 28. Rules adopted pUrsuant to this 
subsection are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A. 
Sec. 3.2S-A MRSA §2077, sub-§l-A, as enacted by PL 2003, c. 452, Pt. P, §7 
and affected by Pt. X, §2, is amended to read: 
l-A. ][mportation of malt liquor or wine into State. A Except as provided in 
section 1403-A, a person other than a wholesale licensee, small brewery licensee or farm 
winery licensee may not transport or cause to be transported malt liquor or wine into the 
State in a quantity greater than 3 gallons for malt liquor or 4 quarts for wine, unless it was 
legally purchased in the State. 
The following penalties apply to violations of this 
subsection. 
A. 
A person who illegally transports into the State wine or malt liquor in a quantity 
of less than 10 gallons commits a civil violation for which a fine of not more than 
$500 must be adjudged. 
B. 
A person who illegally transports into the State wine or malt liquor in a quantity 
of 10 or more gallons commits a Class E crime, which is a strict liability crime as 
defmed in Title 17-A, section 34, subsection 4-A. 
Sec. 4. 2S-A MRS A §2077, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2003, c. 452, Pt. P, §7 
and affected by Pt. X, §2; is further amended to read: 
2. Transportation of malt liquor and wine within State. A Except as provided in 
. 
section 1403-A, a person other than a licensee may not transport malt liquor, in a quantity 
greater than 3 gallons, or wine, in a quantity greater than 4 quarts, within the State unless 
it was purchased from an off-premise retail licensee .. 
A. 
A person who illegally transports within the State wine or malt liquor in a 
quantity ofless than 10 gallons commits a civil violation for which a fine of not more 
than $500 must be adjudged. 
. 
B. 
A person who illegally transports within the State wine or malt liquor in a 
quantity of 10 or more gallons commits a Class E crime, which is a strict liability 
crime as defined in Title 17-A, section 34, subsection 4-A. 
Sec. 5. 2S-A MRS A §2077-B, sub-§l, as enacted by PL 1997, c. 501, §6,is 
amended to read: 
1. Prohibition. A Except as provided in section 1403-A, a person may not sell, 
furnish, deliver or purchase liquor from im Olit-of-state company by mail order. 
Sec. 6. 36 MRSA §1754-B, sub-§l, ~, as amended by PL 2007, c. 328, §6, is 
further amended to read: 
H. 
Every person that makes retail sales in this State of tangible per:>onal property or 
taxable services on behalf of the owner of that property or the provider of those 
services;~ 
Sec. 7. 36 MRSA §1754-B, sub-§l, C!fll,as emlcted by PL 2007, c. 328, §7, is 
amended to read: . 
. 
1. Every person not otherwise required to be registered that sells tangible personal 
property to the State and is required to register asa condition of doing business with 
the State pursuant to Title 5, section 1825-R·; and 
Sec. S. 36 MRSA §1754-B, sub-§l, errJ is enacted to read: 
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Every person that holds a wine direct shipper license under Title 28-A, section 
1403-A. . 
SUMMARY 
This bill establishes a license to allow for the direct shipment of wine to registered 
shipment outlets. The license allows certain in-state and out-of-state wineries .to ship up 
to 12 cases of wine annually to such registered outlets for pick-up by consumers who are 
years of age or older. The registered shipment outlet must be shown proof of age in 
order to release a delivery to a consumer. Wine shipments must be conspic40usly labeled 
that they contain alcohol and may be delivered only to a person 21 years of age or older. 
The. bill requires that a direct shipper is required to pay all applicable taxes, including 
excise and premium taxes on wine. The bill establishes reporting requirements for direct 
shippers and lists specific penalties for specific violations of laws governing the direct 
shipment of wine. 
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