The General Assembly passed a bill late last night which will increase fees for alcohol vendors, but rejected a proposal to increase taxes in individual sales.
House Bill 210 will double licensing fees which have remained unchanged since 1955 in Delaware. The bill will require all licensees that wish to sell alcoholic liquors on Sunday to pay an additional fee. Currently taprooms, taverns, farm wineries, and package stores are not required to pay an additional fee while other licensees are.
The House passed the bill by a vote of 25-16; the Senate vote was 17-3. The Department of Finance estimates the increases could generate $600,000 annually for the state.
House Bill 212, however, never made it out of the House, voted down by a narrow margin of 22-19. It would have raised fees on per-bottle and per-can sales of alcohol.
