Possibility Of 'Alcohol Tax' Discussed Again In Maryland
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Some lawmakers want to add a "dime a drink" tax to alcoholic drinks in Maryland. Delegates introduced the bill this week.
Kelly McPherson explains why some local businesses are fighting it.
"It seems like worse than a dime a drink, actually," said David Wells, The Wine Source.
Business owners doing the math say the newly proposed increase to the alcohol tax would be a significant burden to the hospitality industry.
"The issue isn't whether alcohol taxes should be discussed. The issue is this particular proposal is absurd. The percentages, as you are well aware, are astronomical," said Hugh Sisson, Clipper City Brewery.
The wine tax goes from 40 cents to $3 and beer will go from nine cents to $1.16. The steepest increase would be for spirits. A bottle of vodka has about a 70 cent tax right now. In Maryland, if this bill were to pass, it would go up to just under $5.
Sisson is a managing partner of Clipper City Brewery. He says this bill would increase his excise taxes from $20,000 to $270,000 per year.
"Does that mean I have to pass that along? Uh, yeah. Can I pass along all of it? I don't know," he said.
While jobs and small businesses may be at stake, the state budget has a gap. This would add an estimated $215 million, breaking down to $11 for a moderate drinker.
The owner of the Wine Source in Hampden says if the funds help local government, he supports it.
"Every penny I have is tied up in this outfit in the city of Baltimore and this neighborhood, this community has got to work or I've got nothing. I'm more than willing to pay my fair share," Wells said.
"What you don't want to have is Maryland being five, six times the rate of Virginia, Delaware, etc., because that really puts Maryland businesses at a significant disadvantage," said Sisson.
Some business owners worry that if this passes, consumers will buy less and spend less, ultimately hurting the stores and bars.
The bill earmarks the additional funds to go toward hospitals for Medicare coverage.
