Maryland lawmakers again consider lifting ban on beer and wine sales in grocery stores

Will beer and wine be sold in grocery stores in Maryland? 

The Maryland General Assembly is once again considering legislation to allow grocery stores to sell some alcohol.

A House Bill being discussed would allow grocery stores to buy a liquor license from a local retailer to sell beer and wine. 

"To be able to sell beer and wine, they'd have to acquire a license from a current establishment, which means that we're not creating a new market where this market's going to come in and flood out the other one," Del. Marlon Amprey, who represents Baltimore City, said at a rally in support of the bill on Wednesday.

For and against beer sales in grocery stores

According to a survey from the Maryland Retailers Alliance, 80% of Marylanders support beer and wine sales in grocery stores.

"It would be very convenient for me to be able to pick up a bottle of wine when I'm shopping for dinner," said Annapolis resident Kathy Krejci.

However, some local liquor stores told WJZ that it could put them out of business.  

A liquor store owner from Hyattsville told WJZ he has been advocating against this bill for 15 years and that he doesn't want to sell his license for his store to a big box retailer.

Liquor store owners against the bill say they don't want to sell their businesses. Even though they can still sell liquor exclusively, they are worried that they won't be able to survive.

"I think nobody would survive," said Vikrem Kansal, who owns La Licoreria in Hyattsville. "When you cut down the whole thing under their feet, I don't know. How is that going to help the liquor store owner? I think they'll be out of business and defaulting on the leases, buildings, businesses, incomes, everything."

Would small liquor stores survive?

During Wednesday's economic matters committee meeting, many delegates questioned whether consumers would shop at both. 

"It won't change that for me, but if I need something quick, it's right here for me to get it," Krejci said.

The Maryland Retailers Alliance argues that selling beer and wine in grocery stores will not only bolster business at these stores but also make it more convenient for shoppers.

"It's convenient. Everybody can get out and get what they need in one shop," Annapolis resident Samantha Lowman said.

In line with other states

Proponents of the bill argue changing the state's liquor laws would make it more competitive with neighboring states, and generate more revenue for state-run programs.

"When we travel to other states, we're used to buying our wine at the grocery store, and often they sell it at very competitive prices, but we would be sad if our favorite couple that owns Mills fine wine and liquors couldn't compete. That would make us sad," Krejci said.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore's office sent a statement to WJZ, saying the governor supports fair competition, consumer choice and lifting the state's ban on beer and wine sales in liquor stores.

Maryland's alcohol sale laws 

Some business owners in Maryland have argued that lifting the ban on beer and wine sales in grocery stores would hurt craft distillers and would cause smaller retailers to have to compete with convenience stores and larger chains. 

Last year, ahead of the 2025 Legislative Session, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore sparked worries for some liquor businesses after expressing support for an effort that would have allowed grocery stores to sell liquor.

"It doesn't make sense for Maryland to be out of step with the rest of the country, but the reality is, if people want to come and have beer and wine, one of the common threads I see and hear is people want this to happen," Gov. Moore said last year. "This is about listening to the people."

Ultimately, the ban was not overturned. Similar efforts have been launched in the past. 

In 2017, a panel of beer industry leaders discussed whether to promote sales in grocery stores; however, they doubted that lawmakers would support the change. 

"It's time to end the ridiculousness, the fact of the matter is we are living in an era of prohibition, in the 21st century, and the only people who can effect this change are elected officials," Adam Borden with Marylanders for Better Beer and Wine Laws said at the time.

In 2018, former Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot advocated for the sale of alcohol in grocery stores, saying, "I know it's a strange, quirky system I'm advocating. It's called free enterprise, it's called capitalism and it works." 

In 2021, Maryland lawmakers considered legislation that would have allowed grocery stores to qualify for liquor licenses, required that they offer a full line of products in "priority funding areas. However, the bill stalled after being introduced in both the House and Senate.