Worcester County - Alcoholic Beverages - Temporary To-Go Event Permit and Class C Per Diem Municipal To-Go Beer, Wine, and Liquor License
Summary
SB 846 creates a new local alcohol service framework for Worcester County centered on special events in certain municipalities. The bill authorizes a temporary to-go event permit that allows qualifying Class B and Class D license holders near a designated special event area to sell beer, wine, or liquor in approved to-go cups for consumption within that event area. It also establishes a new Class C per diem municipal to-go beer, wine, and liquor license that can be issued to the municipalities of Berlin, Pocomoke City, and Snow Hill, allowing those municipalities to designate special event areas for up to seven consecutive days.
The bill requires the Worcester County Board of License Commissioners to adopt regulations governing issuance and operation of both the temporary permit and the municipal per diem license. Those regulations must address special event area designation, hours of sale, age verification, approved to-go cups, notice and hearing requirements, and public safety and event security. The permit fee is set at $20 per day, and the municipal license fee is set at $45 per day. The act takes effect July 1, 2026.
Impact
SB 846 amends the Worcester County provisions of the Alcoholic Beverages and Cannabis Article by adding two new local licensing tools and modifying several existing license sections to connect them to the new temporary to-go permit. It expands the authority of the county liquor board to regulate event-based alcohol sales beyond the licensed premises, but only in connection with a municipal special event area and only for specified license classes and locations. The bill affects Class B and Class D beer, beer-and-wine, and beer-wine-liquor license holders, as well as the three named municipalities that may receive the new per diem municipal license.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have been broadly supported and noncontroversial. It received a favorable committee report with amendments and then passed both chambers unanimously, with 45-0 in the Senate and 113-0 in the House. The voting record suggests consensus that the measure was a practical local economic and event-management tool for Worcester County.
Contention
No committee transcript was provided, and the recorded votes show no opposition, so there is no documented floor-level controversy. The main policy issues implicit in the bill are local control, alcohol service at public events, and public safety safeguards. Any concerns would likely center on age verification, security, and the expansion of off-premises-style consumption into designated event areas, but the bill addresses those by requiring county regulations and limiting the permit to specific license holders, municipalities, and event areas.