Amends TCA Title 57.

This bill creates a common carrier license to be issued by the alcoholic beverage commission to a person, firm, or corporation that transports goods for a fee and maintains a regularly established schedule of service within this state to transport wine from a winery direct shipper or a fulfillment house directly to citizens of this state over 21 years of age.<br /> <br /> Under present law, a "fulfillment house" is an in- or out-of-state entity, other than a winery, or farm winery, wholesaler, non-resident seller, or common carrier, that takes physical possession of a winery direct shipper's wine and handles logistics, including warehousing, packaging, order fulfillment, or shipping services on behalf of a winery direct shipper licensee for products that the winery direct shipper is eligible to ship to residents in this state. Generally, a winery direct shipper is a person or entity in the business of manufacturing, bottling or rectifying wine and makes sales and deliveries of wine by common carrier to citizens of this state who have purchased wine directly from the winery.<br /> <br /> This bill requires common carriers under this bill to transport wine only to individuals over 21 years of age and in accordance with the present law provisions governing winery direct shippers and fulfillment houses. It will be a violation for a common carrier to not inspect a valid, government-issued identification for proof the individual is 21 years of age or older upon the time of final delivery.<br /> <br /> Under present law, it is a Class E felony for a person who does not possess a winery direct shipper's license to ship wine to residents of this state. This bill deletes this provision and instead makes it a Class E felony for a person to ship alcoholic beverages or beer to residents of this state without a license that authorizes such activity. This bill also makes it a Class B misdemeanor, punishable by fine only, for a person to deliver alcoholic beverages or beer to an individual in this state without a face-to-face delivery, without checking the individual's valid, government-issued identification for proof that the individual is 21 years of age or older, and without obtaining a signature from the individual. <br /> <br /> This bill specifies that it will not apply to common carriers regulated under federal rail transportation policy, to rail trailer-on flatcar/container-on-flatcar (TOF/COFC) service, or to highway TOFC/COFC service provided by a rail carrier, as part of continuous intermodal freight transportation, including any other TOFC/COFC transportation as defined under federal law.<br /> <br /> ON FEBRUARY 14, 2022, THE SENATE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1, AND PASSED SENATE BILL 1686, AS AMENDED.<br /> <br /> AMENDMENT #1 deletes this bill's requirement that a common carrier obtain a separate license for each separate warehouse at which a common carrier maintains physical possession of wine. This amendment increases the license fee for a common carrier license from $500 to $1,000.<br />