As the Maryland General Assembly starts next Wednesday, Marylanders for Better Beer & Wine Laws (MBBWL) wants to tell you as Maryland voters how you can be most helpful and the process the wine shipping bill will take to become law this year. What was initially perceived as a wineries-only issue has now become an everyone-but-the-wholesalers issue, with consumers, retailers, wineries, grape growers, the broader business community, economic development agencies and farmers backing our efforts. The arguments against wine shipping are baseless red herrings. No, wine shipping will not bring about world peace nor will it close the gaping Maryland budget deficit, but its passage will make a measurable difference to the thousands of Maryland residents who want more choice and more economic opportunity while bringing positive tax revenue to the Free State and nurturing new industries.
Letter Writing 101
Our esteemed elected officials do want to hear from you and arguably in the following priority:
1) a personalized letter or email from a constituent
2) a form letter or email from a constituent
3) a telephone call from a constituent
4) non-constituent letters/junk
They are so inundated with correspondence during the 90 day Session that delegates’ and senators’ aides quickly sort through constituent correspondence and usually do not have time to deal with anything not directly from a constituent. To facilitate our efforts, we ask that you send your emails and letters of support to either of the following addresses:
letters@mbbwl.org
or
MBBWL
4315 Underwood Road
Baltimore, MD 21218
Please be sure to include YOUR FULL MAILING ADDRESS AND PHONE NUMBER in any correspondence to be able to verify your legislative district. We will make sure that your concerns are submitted to the appropriate parties. Your emails or letters do not need to be terribly long or complicated:
Dear Del./Sen. ___:
I am a constituent and urge you to support direct wine shipping. This bill has been around for too long, and 2010 should be our vintage. Please encourage your colleagues on the respective committee to pass this bill to the full chamber floor for a vote. I look forward to celebrating your support of this legislation during the upcoming election cycle. Please let me know your position on this legislation and whether you plan to represent your constituents’ interests in this matter.
Respectfully,
XXX
Address
City, State ZIP
Tel. #
The Process
Wine shipping will be heard in both the House of Delegates and Senate as the bill will be cross-filed; its sponsor in the House is Del. Carolyn Krysiak and in the Senate, Senators Jamie Raskin and Catherine Pugh are the lead sponsors. Once the companion House and Senate bills are introduced to the General Assembly, they will be assigned bill numbers and referred to the appropriate committees.
House of Delegates
In the House, wine shipping falls to the Alcohol Sub-Committee of the Economic Matters Committee. Wine shipping has never before gotten out of committee. The following delegates are on the sub-committee:
Chair Mary Ann Love (D) – District 32 in Anne Arundel County includes Odenton, Ft. Meade, Glen Burnie, Ferndale and BWI (district map)
Aisha Braveboy (D) – District 25 in Prince George’s County includes Largo, District Heights and BWI (district map)
Rick Impallaria (R) – District 7 in Baltimore & Harford Counties includes Cockeysville, Constant Friendship and White Marsh (district map)
Sally Jameson (D) – District 28 in Charles County includes the entire county (district map)
James King (R) – District 33A in Anne Arundel County includes Severna Park, Crofton, Millersville and Crownsville (district map)
Carolyn Krysiak (D) – District 46 in Baltimore City includes Highlandtown, Inner Harbor, Federal Hill, Cherry Hill and Brooklyn (district map)
James Mathias (D) – District 38B in Wicomico & Worcester Counties includes Salisbury, Ocean City and Pocomoke City (district map)
Sonny Minnick (D) – District 6 in Baltimore County includes Sparrows Point, Dundalk, Essex and Rosedale (district map)
Donna Stiffler (R) – District 35A in Harford County includes north of Bel Air and APG (district map)
If and when the wine shipping bill gets a favorable recommendation from the Alcohol Sub-Committee, it will then be referred to the full Economic Matters Committee (ECM):
Chair Dereck Davis (D) – District 25 in Prince George’s County
Vice Chair David Rudolph (D) – District 34B in Cecil County
Charles Barkley (D) – District 39 in Montgomery County
Emmett Burns (D) – District 10 in Baltimore County
**Brian Feldman (D) – District 15 in Montgomery County
**Jeannie Haddaway (R) – District 37B in Caroline, Dorchester, Talbot & Wicomico Counties
Hattie Harrison (D) – District 45 in Baltimore City
**Sue Hecht (D) – District 3A in Frederick County
Ruth Kirk (D) – District 44 in Baltimore City
**Roger Manno (D) – District 19 in Montgomery County
Brian McHale (D) – District 46 in Baltimore City
Warren Miller (R) – District 9A in Howard County
Herman Taylor (D) – District 14 in Montgomery County
Michael Vaughn (D) – District 24 in Prince George’s County
**Mary Roe Walkup (R) – District 36 in Caroline, Cecil, Kent and Queen Anne’s Counties
** Voted favorably for bill in 2009
Once Economic Matters votes favorably on wine shipping, the bill will pass to the entire House of Delegates floor where every vote will count.
Senate
In the Senate, the wine shipping legislation will be heard again by the Education, Health & Environmental Affairs Committee (EHEA):
Chair Joan Conway (D) – District 43 in Baltimore City includes Guilford, Homeland, Hamilton and Morgan State (district map)
Vice Chair Roy Dyson (D) – District 29 in Calvert, Charles & St. Mary’s Counties includes St. Mary’s County and southern Calvert County (district map)
Richard Colburn (R) – District 37 in Caroline, Dorchester, Talbot & Wicomico Counties includes Easton, Greensboro and Salisbury (district map)
**David Harrington (D) – District 47 in Prince George’s County includes Adelphi, Brentwood, Cheverly and Landover Hills (district map)
**Andrew Harris (R) – District 7 in Baltimore & Harford Counties includes Cockeysville, Constant Friendship and White Marsh (district map)
**Michael Lennett (D) –District 19 in Montgomery County includes Colesville, Glenmont, Aspen Hill and Laytonsville (district map)
**Paul Pinsky (D) – District 22 in Prince George’s County includes Greenbelt and New Carrollton (district map)
Edward Reilly (R) – District 33 in Anne Arundel County includes Severna Park, Millersville, Crofton, Churchton and Friendship (district map)
James Rosapepe (D) – District 21 in Prince George’s & Anne Arundel Counties includes Laurel, Patuxent, Beltsville and College Park (district map)
** Co-sponsored bill in 2009
Once the Education, Health & Environmental Affairs Committee votes favorably on wine shipping, the bill will pass to the entire Senate floor where every vote will count.
As wine shipping has never before left either committee, your greatest contribution will be to get constituents of these two committees to write letters and emails if you are not a constituent already. Please look over the list of towns and see where you might know people who live in them. Then get in touch with them and urge them to help pass wine shipping!
We will be sure to let you know once the bill numbers are created and the hearing dates set, so we can coordinate who will be able to come testify. May 2010 be our vintage!
Tastefully yours,
Adam Borden
Executive Director
Marylanders for Better Beer & Wine Laws
4315 Underwood Road
Baltimore, MD 21218
Tel: (443) 570-8102
http://www.mbbwl.org
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