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Some lawmakers say liquor-store chains should continue to be illegal in Tennessee — at least for the time being.
The state Senate voted Monday to limit liquor store owners to two locations, upending part of the bargain struck two years ago when the state passed its wine-in-grocery stores law.
The dispute is the latest over Tennessee's liquor laws. It pits the state's mom-and-pop liquor stores against out-of-state sellers, like Maryland's Total Wine & More.
A spokesman for the chain, Edward Cooper, said in an email the company is disappointed that senators "voted to pass anti-free-market legislation." He said the company might sue.
Monday's vote on Senate Bill 2094 came at the urging of liquor store owners. In 2014, they were in favor of getting rid of a decades-old rule that limited them to just one location. Lifting the restriction was part of a larger bargain meant to satisfy liquor retailers and distributors and bring wine to Tennessee grocery stores.
But the thinking back then was liquor sellers would have to live in Tennessee to own a store, says state Sen. Bill Ketron, R-Murfreesboro. Since then, state courts have found that rule to be unconstitutional.
"So that backs us up," says Ketron. "And the retail association, all of the store owners, felt like two should be a good number."
The House is expected vote on the two-store limit later this session.
The dispute would have no direct impact on grocery stores, which are slated to start selling wine July 1. But the measure could have an indirect impact.
In addition to the two-store cap, Ketron has proposed relaxing distribution rules ahead of the wine-in-grocery stores start date. That would allow grocers to start purchasing wine and stocking shelves, in time to begin sales promptly on July 1.
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