Massachusetts Question 3, Changes to Alcohol Retail Licensing Initiative (2022)
Massachusetts Question 3 | |
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Election date November 8, 2022 | |
Topic Alcohol | |
Status![]() | |
Type State statute | Origin Citizens |
Massachusetts Question 3, the Changes to Alcohol Retail Licensing Initiative, was on the ballot in Massachusetts as an indirect initiated state statute on November 8, 2022.[1] The ballot measure was defeated.
A "yes" vote supported this ballot initiative to:
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A "no" vote opposed this ballot initiative that would make changes to alcohol retail licensing, fining, and operations. |
Election results
Massachusetts Question 3 |
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Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
Yes | 1,069,921 | 44.90% | ||
1,312,906 | 55.10% |
Overview
What would Question 3 have done?
- See also: Text of measure
Question 3 would have incrementally increased the statewide limit on the combined number of retail alcohol licenses an establishment could have, which includes licenses for all alcoholic beverages (including liquor) and for wine, malt, and beer. The measure proposed the following limit increases:[1]
- from nine licenses to 12 on January 1, 2023,
- from 12 licenses to 15 on January 1, 2027, and
- from 15 licenses to 18 on January 1, 2031.
The measure would have limited the maximum number of licenses for the sale of all alcoholic beverages an establishment could have to seven beginning in 2023 unless the retailer already holds more than seven on December 31, 2022.[1]
Question 3 would have also prohibited in-store automated and self-checkout sales of alcohol. It would have also changed the formula used to calculate fines for selling to underage consumers by using gross profits on all retail sales instead of gross profits on alcoholic beverage sales. At the time of the election, the formula to calculate fines equals 50% of the daily gross profits on the sale of alcohol multiplied by the number of license suspension days. Fines are levied in lieu of suspension of a license.[1][2]
Question 3 would have also changed the laws governing identification cards for alcohol purchases to include a valid motor vehicle license issued by another state.[1]
Who supported and opposed Question 3?
- See also: Supports and Opposition
21st Century Alcohol Retail Reform Committee led the campaign in support of Question 3. The committee has reported $1.1 million in contributions with $701,049 of the total from the Massachusetts Package Stores Association. The association wrote on its website, "Why vote yes on Question #3? Balance will be restored by decreasing the number of full liquor licenses allowed by an individual or corporation from nine (9) to seven (7), while progressively increasing the number of beer and wine licenses from nine (9) to eighteen (18), minus any full liquor licenses owned by the corporation or individual. To improve public safety, self-checkout of alcohol beverages will be prohibited and a fine for selling to a minor will be based on gross sales, not just for alcohol beverages. The initiative petition also helps the entire alcohol beverages industry by allowing for valid out of state IDs to be relied upon. Massachusetts is the only state in the U.S. that does not permit a retailer to reasonably rely on valid out-of-state IDs."[3]
Food Stores for Consumer Choice was registered in opposition to Question 3. The committee had reported $12.50 in contributions. Massachusetts Fine Wines & Spirits, LLC (Total Wine) reported $2.6 million in independent expenditures to oppose Question 3. Ryan Kearney, general counsel for the Retailers Association of Massachusetts, said, "We consider this to be overreach and a blatant attempt to stifle competition from businesses that seek to offer a wide array of products." Brian Houghton, senior vice president of the Massachusetts Food Association, said, "It is not fair or rational to limit multi-store grocers to a limited number of full licenses they can hold statewide simply because they sell food."[4]
Text of measure
Ballot question
The ballot question was as follows:[5]
“ | Do you approve of a law summarized below, on which no vote was taken by the Senate or the House of Representatives on or before May 3, 2022?[6] | ” |
Ballot summary
The final ballot summary for Question 3 was as follows.[7]
“ | This proposed law would increase the statewide limits on the combined number of licenses for the sale of alcoholic beverages for off-premises consumption (including licenses for 'all alcoholic beverages' and for 'wines and malt beverages') that any one retailer could own or control: from 9 to 12 licenses in 2023; to 15 licenses in 2027; and to 18 licenses in 2031.
Beginning in 2023, the proposed law would set a maximum number of 'all alcoholic beverages' licenses that any one retailer could own or control at 7 licenses unless a retailer currently holds more than 7 such licenses. The proposed law would require retailers to conduct the sale of alcoholic beverages for off-premises consumption through face-to-face transactions and would prohibit automated or self-checkout sales of alcoholic beverages by such retailers. The proposed law would alter the calculation of the fine that the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission may accept in lieu of suspending any license issued under the State Liquor Control Act. The proposed law would modify the formula for calculating such fee from being based on the gross profits on the sale of alcoholic beverages to being based on the gross profits on all retail sales. The proposed law would also add out-of-state motor vehicle licenses to the list of the forms of identification that any holder of a license issued under the State Liquor Control Act, or their agent or employee, may choose to reasonably rely on for proof of a person’s identity and age.[6] |
” |
Full text
The full text of the measure is below:
Readability score
- See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2022
Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL) and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title and summary for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The secretary of state wrote the ballot language for this measure.
The FKGL for the ballot title is grade level 11, and the FRE is 60. The word count for the ballot title is 26.
The FKGL for the ballot summary is grade level 19, and the FRE is 23. The word count for the ballot summary is 243.
Support
21st Century Alcohol Retail Reform Committee led the campaign in support of Question 3.[8]
Supporters
Corporations
Unions
Arguments
Official arguments
The following is the argument in support of Question 3 found in the Official Voter Information Guide:[9]
|
Opposition
Food Stores for Consumer Choice led the campaign in opposition to Question 3.[10]
Opponents
Corporations
Unions
Organizations
Arguments
Official arguments
The following is the argument in opposition to Question 3 found in the Official Voter Information Guide:[11]
|
Campaign finance
There was one committee registered in support of the measure: 21st Century Alcohol Retail Reform Committee. The committee reported $1.1 million in contributions. There was one committee registered in opposition to the measure: Food Stores for Consumer Choice. The committee did not report cash contributions. Massachusetts also required other organizations that spend money to support or oppose ballot measures to report amounts to the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance. Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance reported $12,858.92 spent in opposition to Question 3. Massachusetts Fine Wines & Spirits, LLC (Total Wine) reported $2.7 million in opposition to Question 3.[8][12]
Cash Contributions | In-Kind Contributions | Total Contributions | Cash Expenditures | Total Expenditures | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Support | $991,300.00 | $139,955.04 | $1,131,255.04 | $991,300.00 | $1,131,255.04 |
Oppose | $0.00 | $12.50 | $12.50 | $0.00 | $12.50 |
Total | $991,300.00 | $139,967.54 | $1,131,267.54 | $991,300.00 | $1,131,267.54 |
Support
The following table includes contribution and expenditure totals for the committee in support of the ballot measure.[8]
Committees in support of Question 3 | |||||
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Committee | Cash Contributions | In-Kind Contributions | Total Contributions | Cash Expenditures | Total Expenditures |
21st Century Alcohol Retail Reform Committee | $991,300.00 | $139,955.04 | $1,131,255.04 | $991,300.00 | $1,131,255.04 |
Total | $991,300.00 | $139,955.04 | $1,131,255.04 | $991,300.00 | $1,131,255.04 |
Donors
The following table shows the top donor to the committee registered in support of the ballot measure.[8]
Donor | Cash Contributions | In-Kind Contributions | Total Contributions |
---|---|---|---|
Massachusetts Package Stores Association | $635,380.00 | $65,668.80 | $701,048.80 |
Julio's Liquors | $6,000.00 | $8,180.19 | $14,180.19 |
Deerfield Spirit Shoppe | $10,000.00 | $0.00 | $10,000.00 |
Liquors 44 | $7,500.00 | $0.00 | $7,500.00 |
Jay's Wine & Spirits | $0.00 | $6,291.25 | $6,291.25 |
Opposition
The following table includes contribution and expenditure totals for the committee in opposition to the ballot measure.[8]
Committees in support of Question 3 | |||||
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Committee | Cash Contributions | In-Kind Contributions | Total Contributions | Cash Expenditures | Total Expenditures |
Food Stores for Consumer Choice | $0.00 | $12.50 | $12.50 | $0.00 | $12.50 |
Total | $0.00 | $12.50 | $12.50 | $0.00 | $12.50 |
Methodology
To read Ballotpedia's methodology for covering ballot measure campaign finance information, click here.
Media editorials
- See also: 2022 ballot measure media endorsements
Ballotpedia identified the following media editorial board as taking positions on Question 3.
Ballotpedia lists the positions of media editorial boards that support or oppose ballot measures. This does not include opinion pieces from individuals or groups that do not represent the official position of a newspaper or media outlet. Ballotpedia includes editorials from newspapers and outlets based on circulation and readership, political coverage within a state, and length of publication. You can share media editorial board endorsements with us at editor@ballotpedia.org.
Support
Opposition
You can share campaign information or arguments, along with source links for this information, at editor@ballotpedia.org.
Polls
- See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls and 2022 ballot measure polls
- Are you aware of a poll on this ballot measure that should be included below? You can share ballot measure polls, along with source links, with us at editor@ballotpedia.org.
Massachusetts Question 3, Changes to Alcohol Retail Licensing Initiative (2022) | ||||||
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UMass Amherst/WCVB | 10/20/22 - 10/26/22 | 700 RV | ± 4.3% | 39% | 38% | 23% |
Question: "Question 3 - Would increase the statewide limit on the combined number of licenses for the sale of alcoholic beverages for off premises consumption that any one retailer could own or control." | ||||||
Note: LV is likely voters, RV is registered voters, and EV is eligible voters.
Background
Massachusetts alcohol licensing and regulation
The Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission (ABCC) is authorized to oversee the manufacturing, importing, exporting, storing, transporting, and selling of alcoholic beverages in the state. Local Licensing Authorities (LLA) are authorized to issue retail licenses for on-premises consumption (restaurants, hotels, clubs, and general-on-premises) and off-premises consumption (package stores, grocery stores, and convenience stores). The licensing process requires (i) the LLA to grant a license; (ii) the ABCC to approve the license; and (iii) the LLA to issue the license upon receipt of the licensing fee. State law requires a license quota system that limits the number of licenses the LLA can issue in an area based on population.[13]
Types of alcohol licenses
At the time of the election, there are three classifications of retail licenses: on-premise license, special license, and off-premise license. There are four categories of retail liquor licenses: all alcoholic beverages (wine, malt beverages, and distilled spirits), wine only, malt beverages only, and wine and malt beverages. Currently, state law limits the number of all alcoholic beverage licenses to nine per establishment.[13]
For calendar year 2019, the ABCC reported 9,425 on-premise licenses, 3,052 off-premise licenses, and 28 package store licenses issued.[14]
Fines for selling to underage consumers
As of 2022, state law imposes a fine for selling to underage consumers that is equal to 50% of the daily gross profits on the sale of alcohol multiplied by the number of license suspension days. Fines are levied in lieu of suspension of a license.[15]
Consumer identification to purchase alcohol
At the time of the election, Massachusetts law did not explicitly authorize retailers to accept valid driver's licenses issued by another state as a form of identification to purchase alcohol. The law states:[16]
“ | Any licensee, or agent or employee thereof, under this chapter who reasonably relies on such a liquor purchase identification card or motor vehicle license issued pursuant to section eight of chapter ninety, or on an identification card issued under section 8E of chapter 90, or on a valid passport issued by the United States government, or by the government, recognized by the United States government, of a foreign country, or a valid United States issued military identification card, for proof of a person's identity and age shall not suffer any modification, suspension, revocation or cancellation of such license, nor shall he suffer any criminal liability, for delivering or selling alcohol or alcoholic beverages to a person under twenty-one years of age.[6] | ” |
Alcohol on the ballot, 2022
Three initiatives related to alcohol were certified for the 2022 ballot in Colorado. One initiative was certified for the 2022 ballot in Massachusetts.
Year | Measure | Description | Outcome |
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2022 | Colorado Retail Liquor Store Licenses Initiative | Incrementally increases the number of retail liquor store licenses an individual may own or hold a share in | |
2022 | Colorado Grocery and Convenience Store Wine Sales Initiative | Creates a new fermented malt beverage and wine retailer license to allow grocery stores, convenience stores, and other businesses that are licensed to sell beer to also sell wine and conduct wine tastings | |
2022 | Colorado Alcohol Delivery Service Initiative | Allows retail establishments licensed to sell alcohol for off-site consumption to offer a delivery service or provide for a third-party alcohol delivery service | |
2022 | Massachusetts Changes to Alcohol Retail Licensing Initiative | Incrementally increase the statewide limit on the combined number of retail alcohol licenses an establishment can have, including licenses for all alcoholic beverages and for wine and beer; prohibit self-checkout sales of alcohol; other changes |
Path to the ballot
The state process
In Massachusetts, the number of signatures required to qualify an indirect initiated state statute for the ballot is equal to 3.5 percent of the votes cast for governor in the most recent gubernatorial election. No more than one-quarter of the verified signatures on any petition can come from a single county. The process for initiated state statutes in Massachusetts is indirect, which means the legislature has a chance to approve initiatives with successful petitions directly without the measure going to the voters. A first round of signatures equal to 3 percent of the votes cast for governor is required to put an initiative before the legislature. A second round of signatures equal to 0.5 percent of the votes cast for governor in the last election is required to put the measure on the ballot if the legislature rejects or declines to act on a proposed initiated statute. Signatures for initiated statutes in Massachusetts are collected in two circulation periods. The first period runs from the third Wednesday in September to two weeks prior to the first Wednesday in December, a period of nine weeks. If the proposed law is not adopted by the first Wednesday of May, petitioners then have until the first Wednesday of July (eight weeks) to request additional petition forms and submit the second round of signatures.
The requirements to get an initiated state statute certified for the 2022 ballot:
- Signatures required (first round): 80,239 signatures
- Signatures required (second round): 13,374 signatures
- Deadline (first round): The deadline to submit the first round of signatures to the secretary of state was December 1, 2021. Signatures needed to be submitted to local registrars by November 17, 2021.
- Deadline (second round): The deadline to submit the second round of signatures was July 6, 2022.
If enough signatures are submitted in the first round, the legislature must act on a successful petition by the first Wednesday of May. The measure only goes on the ballot if the legislature does not pass it and if the second round of signatures is successfully collected.
Details about this initiative
- Question 3 was filed by Robert Mellion, the executive director of the Massachusetts Package Stores Association (MPSA).[1]
- On September 1, 2021, the attorney general cleared the initiative for signature gathering.[7]
- On November 26, 2021, MPSA announced that the campaign had gathered more than 80,000 signatures.[17]
- On December 1, 2021, MPSA announced that they had submitted 109,000 certified signatures to the secretary of state.[18]
- At the end of December, the secretary of state certified the petition to the legislature.[19]
- The state legislature did not pass the initiative before the May deadline. The campaign was cleared to gather a second round of signatures.
- On July 7, the state elections office reported that the initiative had filed a second round of signatures.[20]
- On July 14, the secretary of state informed the campaign they had qualified for the ballot.[21]
Cost per required signature
Sponsors of the measure hired Spoonworks Inc. to collect signatures for the petition to qualify this measure for the ballot. A total of $723,500.00 was spent to collect the 93,613 valid signatures required to put this measure before voters, resulting in a total cost per required signature (CPRS) of $7.73.
Lawsuit
Lawsuit overview | |
Issue: Whether the initiative contains subjects that are unrelated | |
Court: Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court | |
Ruling: Ruled in favor of the defendants; the subjects are related. | |
Plaintiff(s): Cumberland Farms | Defendant(s): Massachusetts Package Store Association |
Plaintiff argument: The initiative contains several subjects that are unrelated; therefore, the initiative should not have been cleared for circulation. | Defendant argument: The subjects addressed in the initiative are mutually dependent. |
Source: The Eagle-Tribune
Cumberland Farms filed a lawsuit against the initiative arguing that it contained unrelated subjects. On June 13, 2022, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that the initiative "presents voters with an integrated scheme” that “does not require a voter to cast a single vote on dissimilar subjects."[22]
How to cast a vote
- See also: Voting in Massachusetts
See below to learn more about current voter registration rules, identification requirements, and poll times in Massachusetts.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Mass.gov, "Initiative text," accessed July 29, 2021
- ↑ Massachusetts State Legislature, "General Laws, Title XX, Chapter 138, Section 23," accessed August 24, 2022
- ↑ Massachusetts Package Stores Association, "Ballot initiative," accessed September 22, 2022
- ↑ Mass Live, "Massachusetts package stores association proposes to double liquor licenses available to any one retailer," accessed September 22, 2022
- ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of State, "2022 Information for Voters," accessed September 20, 2022
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Massachusetts Attorney General, "Final Summary," accessed September 1, 2021
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance, "Search," accessed July 7, 2022
- ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of State, "Official Voter Information Guide," accessed October 27, 2022
- ↑ MassLive, "More Mass. liquor licenses? How Ballot Question 3 could impact your community," September 29, 2022
- ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of State, "Official Voter Information Guide," accessed October 27, 2022
- ↑ Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance, "Ballot Question Spending Reports ," accessed October 24, 2022
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Massachusetts General Laws, "Title XX. Chapter 138. Section 12." accessed September 19, 2022
- ↑ Mass.gov, "2020 Annual report," accessed September 19, 2022
- ↑ Massachusetts General Laws, "Title XX. Chapter 138. Section 23." accessed September 19, 2022
- ↑ Massachusetts General Law, "Chapter 138, Section 34B." accessed September 22, 2022
- ↑ WBUR, "Mass. liquor stores say they have enough signatures to advance ballot question," November 26, 2021
- ↑ WBUR, "Deadline whittles ballot question field to three campaigns," December 2, 2021
- ↑ Boston Globe, "Gig worker petitions move one step closer to 2022 ballot," December 27, 2021
- ↑ Victoria Antram, "Phone conversation with Elections Department," July 7, 2022
- ↑ Victoria Antram, "Phone conversation with Elections Department," August 9, 2022
- ↑ The Eagle-Tribune, "SJC ruling clears booze battle for ballot," June 14, 2022
- ↑ Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, "The Voting Process," accessed April 13, 2023
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, "Voter Registration Information," accessed April 13, 2023
- ↑ Governing, “Automatic Voter Registration Gains Bipartisan Momentum,” accessed April 13, 2023
- ↑ 26.0 26.1 NCSL, "State Profiles: Elections," accessed August 26, 2024
- ↑ Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, "Massachusetts Official Mail-in Voter Registration Form," accessed November 1, 2024
- ↑ Under federal law, the national mail voter registration application (a version of which is in use in all states with voter registration systems) requires applicants to indicate that they are U.S. citizens in order to complete an application to vote in state or federal elections, but does not require voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the application "may require only the minimum amount of information necessary to prevent duplicate voter registrations and permit State officials both to determine the eligibility of the applicant to vote and to administer the voting process."
- ↑ 29.0 29.1 Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, "Identification Requirements," accessed April 13, 2023
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