Requires that alcoholic beverages imported into New York be first delivered to a licensed New York state wholesaler and maintained at a premises or warehouse operated by the wholesaler for a period of twenty-four hours.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A7907
SPONSOR: Benedetto
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the alcoholic beverage control law, in relation to
enacting the "beverage industry jobs act" relating to the shipment of
alcoholic beverages into the state
 
PURPOSE:
To require that alcoholic beverages imported into New York be first
delivered to a licensed New York State wholesaler and maintained at a
premises or warehouse operated by wholesaler for a period of 24 hours
(i.e., "at-rest").
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1: Legislative purpose.
Section 2: Amends paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 102 of the
Alcoholic Beverage Control Law, to require that, in certain circum-
stances, alcoholic beverages shipped into the State from out-of-state
locations be shipped to a licensed New York wholesaler and maintained at
a premises or warehouse operated by such wholesaler. A Print Specif-
ically exempts products produced within New York from the requirements
of this act.
Section 3: Provides for an effective date of January 1 next succeeding
the date the bill becomes law.
 
EXISTING LAW:
Under current law a licensed wholesaler of wine or distilled spirits can
distribute to any licensed retailer even if such shipment is coming from
a warehouse located in another state.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
This bill would have no impact on the current reciprocal direct shipment
laws and would only seek to help to create thousands of new jobs in New
York State and level the current playing field for our New York wine and
distilled spirits wholesalers. Presently, 32 states have enacted an
at-rest statute, such as proposed by this bill, and an additional eight
states have some form of at-rest requirements that have been imposed by
regulation or are implied in the law.
When looking at practices in New York State, over 80% of the licensed
wholesalers of wine and distilled spirits do not warehouse their
products in New York State. In most cases they warehouse their product
in states such as New Jersey and Connecticut. Many fiscal studies have
shown that this has caused a dramatic loss in jobs in New York State and
some estimates show that the enactment of an Hat-rest" statute in New
York State could create over 1,700 jobs and the creation of new ware-
housing facilities in New York State, generate millions in revenue and
ensure that consumers are not getting counterfeit beverage alcohol.
Unlike out-of-state shippers who can deliver alcohol directly to New
York retailers, New York distributors are not afforded the same luxury
in many states, denying them the same competitive opportunities as their
foreign competitors. This legislation "levels the playing field" between
New York businesses and out of state businesses whose state requires the
warehousing of alcoholic beverages delivered from New York. Moreover,
requiring the shipment of alcoholic beverages to an "at-rest" facility
in New York, facilitates the effective collection of New York's taxes on
alcoholic beverages. Currently excise taxes (paid by wholesalers) is
more difficult to collect when such alcoholic beverages are shipped from
out of state. New York should seek to capitalize on opportunities which
ensure that tax revenues are collected for the State of New York. With
New York State on the verge of legalizing cannabis use for adults,
legislators and regulators alike are looking for a streamline d model of
wholesale manufacturing and management.. The Wine and Liquor industry
should be designed to be the gold standard of product ions which expand
both job creation and revenue generation.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2020 A.8210A Referred to Economic Development
2019 A.8210 A Amended & Recommit to Economic Development
2019 A.8210 Referred to Economic Development
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7907
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
July 19, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. BENEDETTO -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Economic Development
AN ACT to amend the alcoholic beverage control law, in relation to
enacting the "beverage industry jobs act" relating to the shipment of
alcoholic beverages into the state
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "beverage
2 industry jobs act".
3 § 2. Legislative purpose. The legislature finds and declares that the
4 proper regulation and control of the manufacture, sale and distribution
5 of alcoholic beverages is in the best interest of the citizens of New
6 York state. The legislature also believes it is in the interest of the
7 citizens of New York state to promote and support the state's wine and
8 craft spirits industry, a growing industry that is helping to revive
9 local economies in many areas of the state. Helping the producers of
10 alcoholic beverages while ensuring that all taxes are properly paid on
11 all wine and liquor sales in the state will increase economic activity
12 in the city and state, ensure that jobs that have left the state as a
13 result of the lack of such a law will return to the state and will
14 increase tax revenue for the state that is currently going unpaid and
15 unaudited.
16 § 3. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 102 of the alcoholic
17 beverage control law, as amended by chapter 210 of the laws of 2005, is
18 amended and a new paragraph (a-1) is added to read as follows:
19 (a) Except as provided in section seventy-nine-c of this chapter, no
20 alcoholic beverages shall be shipped into the state unless the same
21 shall be consigned to a person duly licensed hereunder to traffic in
22 alcoholic beverages. No such alcoholic beverages shall be delivered to a
23 retail licensee other than from inventory stored at a premises or ware-
24 house located in this state that is owned, rented or leased by a whole-
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11186-01-3
A. 7907 2
1 saler licensed by the state of New York. Such inventory shall be deemed
2 to include only alcoholic beverages which shall have been stored in such
3 premises or warehouse for a period of at least twenty-four continuous
4 hours. This prohibition shall apply to all shipments of alcoholic bever-
5 ages into New York state and includes importation or distribution for
6 commercial purposes, for personal use, or otherwise, and irrespective of
7 whether such alcoholic beverages were purchased within or without the
8 state, provided, however, this prohibition shall not apply to any ship-
9 ment consigned to a New York resident who has personally purchased alco-
10 holic beverages for his personal use while outside the United States for
11 a minimum period of forty-eight consecutive hours and which he has
12 shipped as consignor to himself as consignee. Purchases made outside the
13 United States by persons other than the purchaser himself, regardless
14 whether made as his agent, or by his authorization or on his behalf, are
15 deemed not to have been personally purchased within the meaning of this
16 paragraph.
17 (a-1) Any wine or distilled spirits produced in the state of New York
18 are deemed to be in compliance with the requirements of paragraph (a) of
19 this subdivision.
20 § 4. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed-
21 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.