Wine deliveries from out-of-state are banned in RI, and the state is fighting to keep it that way.

PROVIDENCE – A federal judge will weigh dueling briefs in the legal fight over Rhode Island's ban on out-of-state retailers delivering wines to Rhode Islanders’ doorsteps, with the state arguing it’s a matter of public safety and health.

The state relies on a 2022 study showing a precipitous climb in alcohol home delivery early in the COVID pandemic. The study, published in the Substance Abuse Journal, showed that online alcohol sales grew by 234% between March 1, 2020, and April 18, 2020, compared with the same period in 2019, after states loosened their liquor laws.

With that climb came an increase in binge drinking across-the-board. Women, people with children, and Black Americans disproportionately increased their consumption, the study said.

The state also looked to national studies reflecting Rhode Island’s “well-documented” alcohol abuse problem, as compared with national trends. A 2021 study revealed that the estimated rate of alcohol and binge alcohol use in Rhode Island outstripped the national average, the state wrote.

“Rhode Island’s laws that restrict direct shipment of alcohol from out-of-state retailers are necessary to promote the health and safety of Rhode Islanders,” Special Assistant Attorney General Lionel Joseph Dutreix IV wrote in arguing that the case should be decided in the state’s favor without a trial.

'These laws discriminate'

But wine enthusiasts urge U.S. District Chief Judge John J. McConnell Jr. to strike down the state’s retail liquor sales regime as unconstitutional and bar enforcement

“These laws discriminate against out-of-state interests, protect in-state retailers from competition, and deny Rhode Island consumers access to the markets of other states, in violation of the Commerce Clause,” lawyers argued on behalf of wine enthusiasts Kambis Anvar, of East Greenwich, and Michelle Drum, a Newport resident.

The Commerce Clause gives Congress the power to regulate interstate commerce but denies states the power to discriminate against the flow of goods moving in interstate commerce, the wine interests wrote.

More: Why can't you buy beer and wine at the grocery store in Rhode Island? We found out

Appeals court sent the case back to lower court

The case returned to McConnell after a 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in September that Rhode Island’s ban on bottles being shipped from out of state straight to buyers discriminated against retailers from other states.

The appeals panel, composed of three judges from Rhode Island, ruled that the state liquor law “facially discriminates” against out-of-state retailers by limiting retail licenses exclusively to state residents or in-state businesses and by requiring that licensees maintain a physical presence in state.

The court sent the case back to McConnell to examine whether the state can prove that the law discriminating against out-of-state wine sellers is necessary to protect the health and safety of Rhode Islanders.

McConnell had previously upheld the state’s three-tier liquor regime as constitutional, concluding that the state’s wine sales framework was “grounded in its pursuit of public health and safety” and therefore did not violate the dormant Commerce Clause, which prohibits state protectionism.

What's behind the lawsuit?

Anvar and Drum challenged the laws in 2019, arguing that state laws and regulations discriminated against out-of-state wine retailers.

Rhode Island, like many states, controls the distribution of alcohol through a “three-tier system” that protects local liquor stores and distributors from national retailers and e-commerce.

Under the system, the state issues separate licenses for the manufacture, wholesale or retail sale of alcohol, thus distinguishing between each tier of the supply chain. Each licensee is required both to maintain a physical premises in the state, with wine and other spirits first funneled to retailers through in-state wholesalers, who alone can receive shipments from outside the state.

The exception is that consumers may buy alcohol from out-of-state wineries and have it shipped directly to their home, but only if the purchase is made in person.

"The state has been allowing home deliveries by out-of-state wineries for twenty years and has admitted it knows of no instances of public health or safety problems arising from such cross-border deliveries," the consumers argued.

State: Law aims to thwart liquor delivery to minors

The state argued in its latest papers that the state laws “make a licensee absolutely accountable for what happens on his premises,” citing court precedent.

Thus, the system can be carefully regulated and monitored by law enforcement and the state to keep alcohol out of the hands of people under age 21, it said.

“From a health-and-safety standpoint, Rhode Island’s requirement that all alcohol that comes into this state pass through a licensed in-state wholesaler to a licensed in-state retailer ensures that alcoholic beverages are untainted and safe for consumption,” Dutreix said.

The state cited findings in Massachusetts, which in 2015 allowed direct deliveries, showing that online sales and deliveries of alcohol rose by 300% during the pandemic, but many of the sales were being accessed by people under age 21.

“Rhode Island’s laws are carefully drawn to allow its citizens to enjoy home delivery from in-state retailers they can closely monitor and strictly regulate, rather than a free-for-all system whereby any retailer from anywhere can ship alcohol by common carrier to anyone who orders it within Rhode Island,” the state said.

Are consumers denied access to rare vintages?

The wine interests counter that Rhode Island currently has authorized the sale of about 22,800 wines – or only about 5% of the wines approved for sale nationally, thus limiting consumers’ access to rare and fine vintages.

The lawsuit is part of an effort backed by national retailers to strike down state laws preventing direct sales across the country.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: This court case could end RI's ban on out-of-state wine delivery