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Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Wine Shipping
Posted by perle0 on 2005-05-19 13:50:51
(3083 views) 
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[News]
[USA] |
| Today the Supreme Court ruled, in a 5-4 decision, that laws in states such as New York and Michigan were unconstitutional. These laws prohibited wine shipments from out-of-state wineries, while allowing them for in-state wineries. |
The basic logic of the decision was that, while the 21st Amendment repealing Prohibition gives the states the right to control alcohol sales, allowing the right to ship wines only to in-state wineries created unfair protectionism against trade with other states.
Unfortunately, the ruling does not mean that wineries are free to ship wines to any state. On the contrary--it simply means that states that allow in-state wineries to ship wine must also allow out-of-state shipments as well. Michigan Liquor officials have already stated their intent to ban all shipments of wine to Michigan in response to the ruling. (Gee, I'll bet everyone in Michigan ordering Michigan wine online will be devastated. Both of them.)
On the plus side, consumers can hope that some states will open up their shipping laws rather than making them stricter in response. States could gain significant tax revenue by allowing shipments and working with wineries to ensure that such shipments are properly taxed. I know that I'm more likely to buy wine when I travel, knowing that I can't get it at home, and my sales taxes on that wine stay where I bought it.
You can read more details about the ruling, or if you find legal documents fascinating, go straight to the ruling itself. |
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