Law's For Shipping Wine to Louisiana

Guide To Law's For Shipping Wine
In Louisiana

In 1997, Louisiana Governor M. J. (Mike) Foster Jr. signed into law a bill (HB 1754) that would have made it legal to direct ship 60 bottles of wine of any size per year to a Louisiana consumer. It also addressed penalty requirements to avoid abuses of the system, the payment of state taxes, and provides protections to bar minors from ordering wine. In 1998, HB 254 was enacted, dramatically altering and reducing the scope of the original law. Effective June 25, 1998, some of the changes include:

Beer and spirits products are no longer included in the shipping program,
Wineries that are doing business through the three-tier system in the state are now barred from shipping except in the case of "any sale of sparkling or still wine perfected on the premises of the manufacturer and completed by shipment to a consumer in Louisiana."
The price of a shipping permit was increased from $100 to $150 wineries and to $1,500 for retailers, and reporting is now monthly rather than annual.

All permits under the old law are no longer valid. To obtain a new permit application form, you should write to:

Mr. John N. Kennedy, Secretary
Louisiana Dept. of Revenue and Taxation
P.O. Box 201
Baton Rouge, LA 70821-0201
Phone: 504/925-7681

Please cite in your request, the following: "Pursuant to the Provisions of LA Act 7 1—1998, I hereby request the form for applying for a license to direct ship. See Text of HB 254.