The Issue: So far, we’ve successfully fought against the 790% average tax increase on alcohol. Unfortunately, we were not able to stop an increase in the alcohol sales tax.  The legislature voted to increase the alcohol sales tax by 50%.  This will take effect July 1 of this year.

What It Does: Baltimore’s Verna Jones-Rodwell introduced SB 994 in the Maryland Senate – a measure that seeks to increase the sales tax on alcohol by three percent over the next three years. This results in a 50% increase on the alcohol sales tax for both on- and off-premise sales on beverage alcohol transactions.

What It Means: It’s another job-killing tax bill that could be devastating for the hospitality industry and cost Maryland jobs! Everybody loses because a higher sales tax means Maryland will lose business to states with lower or no sales tax costing even more Maryland jobs.

Maryland’s hospitality workers…the distributor drivers, men and women who work in bars, restaurants, hotels, and package stores are critical to our economic recovery. They would be hardest hit by this unfair tax. Our state’s hospitality industry contributes more than $4.55 billion in economic activity and employs 2.2% of the state's workforce.