- Mississippi is one of only three states that doesn’t allow direct shipment of wine to consumers.
Mississippians are one step closer to receiving wines shipped from across the nation after the Senate Finance Committee narrowly passed legislation on Thursday. The effort has fallen flat several times in prior sessions.
However, before corks are popped, the committee unanimously added a reverse repealer before passing SB 2145 by the narrowest of margins, 10-9. A reverse repealer essentially slows down the bill to give lawmakers more time to study the legislation.
The bill would allow Mississippians to order wine from out-of-state wineries. Currently, Mississippi is one of only three states that doesn’t allow direct shipment of wine.
The legislation was presented to the Senate committee by State Senator Jeremy England (R). He said the measure would apply only to wines and no other spirits.
England said some wines are not available in Mississippi, such as boutique and clear or unfinished wines.
“It would open up wines to Mississippi that cannot be found in packaging stories,” he said, noting the bill prohibits shipments from being sent to Mississippi’s counties or municipalities.
Many senators questioned how the legislation would impact package retail stores, which currently do not have outside competition.
“Alabama did this in 2021, and they still have package retail stores,” England told members.
The measure requires a direct wine shipper permit to be purchased from the Department of Revenue. The tax collected on each sale and shipment would be 15.5 percent, with 3 percent going toward mental health services.
The 59-page bill requires a person 21 years or older to show identification when signing for the order.
The amount of wine received annually was a stumbling point for many senators. The bill initially read 24 cases a year per individual. However, some senators in the committee thought that was too high. There could be changes to the amount allowed when it comes to the floor.
The committee did approve an amendment changing “individual” to address, meaning the restrictions on the amount would apply per address or household.
The bill was authored by Senator Walter Michel (R), although Senator England also filed a similar piece of legislation this session as well. It now heads to the Senate floor for consideration.
