Bill > S1940

This bill establishes a new local option excise tax on alcoholic beverage sales that allows cities and towns to impose up to a 2% tax on retail sales of alcoholic beverages not intended for on-premises consumption and on the alcoholic beverage portion of restaurant meals. Municipalities must formally accept the legislation through a specific voting process, and if approved, the tax will take effect on the first day of the calendar quarter following 30 days after acceptance. The revenue collected from this tax must be deposited into a newly created "Municipal Substance Abuse Prevention and Public Health Fund" managed by the municipal treasurer, with expenditures limited to substance abuse prevention, public health protection, and related programs. The bill specifies detailed sourcing rules for sales tracking, requiring vendors to report sales by location and separately track sales in different municipalities. Vendors are required to collect the tax from purchasers and can separately state the tax on sales receipts, and the state's commissioner of revenue is authorized to distribute the collected funds to participating municipalities on a quarterly basis and share necessary administrative information. The legislation aims to provide municipalities with a dedicated funding mechanism for local public health and substance abuse prevention initiatives while giving them flexibility in implementation.

Budget and Finance

https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/S1940