Don’t Let a Good Law Take Away Great Wine: Why Maine’s Bottle Bill Needs a Fix

Maine has always been a leader in environmental stewardship. Our Bottle Bill, first passed in 1976, helped set the standard for recycling across the nation, keeping billions of bottles and cans out of landfills and our natural landscapes. The recent revisions to this law were created with good intentions: to strengthen recycling efforts, ensure producers share in the responsibility, and keep Maine beautiful for generations to come.

But here’s the unintended consequence: these changes have made it nearly impossible for many wineries across the country, especially small, family-run vineyards, to ship directly to Maine residents.

Under the new rules, every producer selling beverages here must register each container size and label with the state, pay fees, and navigate complex reporting requirements. While large corporations can absorb that burden, small wineries simply can’t. They don’t have legal teams or compliance departments, just farmers, winemakers, and a handful of staff focused on crafting extraordinary wine.

The result? All CA, OR, WA, and NY wineries have decided it’s too risky, too costly, and too complicated to continue shipping to Maine. Overnight, consumers lost access to a world of small-lot, sustainable wines, bottles you’ll never find on a grocery store shelf. Wines from vineyards that dry farm to conserve water, use rose bushes instead of pesticides, and bottle in small batches to reduce waste. The very producers who often embody environmental responsibility are being shut out.

This isn’t just about wine. It’s about choice. It’s about keeping Maine connected to the amazing diversity of artisan producers across America. It’s about making sure that environmental policy and consumer access work hand-in-hand, not against each other.

The good news? Laws can be refined. Fixes can be made. We can protect the spirit of the Bottle Bill while making it workable for the small wineries who want to serve Maine.

Here’s How You Can Help:

1. Contact Your Legislators. Let them know you support revising the Bottle Bill to create streamlined compliance for small producers.

2. Share Your Story. If you’ve lost access to a favorite winery or wine club, tell others. Awareness is the first step toward change.

3. Support Advocacy Groups. Join efforts by consumer rights and wine industry organizations working to bring fairness and flexibility to the law.

Every voice matters. Every letter, email, or phone call adds pressure to create a solution that works for everyone, our environment, our consumers, and our small producers.

Maine can be both a leader in environmental protection and a champion of consumer choice. Let’s make sure our laws reflect both values.

Raise your glass for change. before the choice of what fills it disappears.

Contact me to stay up to date or to work with me to advocate for change that works for Maine residents!