PROVIDENCE – A federal judge will weigh dueling briefs in the legal fight over Rhode Island’s ban on out-of-state retailers delivering wines to Rhode Islanders’ doorsteps, with the state arguing it’s a matter of public safety and health.
The state relies on a 2022 study showing a precipitous climb in alcohol home delivery early in the COVID pandemic. The study, published in the Substance Abuse Journal, showed that online alcohol sales grew by 234% between March 1, 2020, and April 18, 2020, compared with the same period in 2019, after states loosened their liquor laws.
With that climb came an increase in binge drinking across-the-board. Women, people with children, and Black Americans disproportionately increased their consumption, the study said.
The state also looked to national studies reflecting Rhode Island’s “well-documented” alcohol abuse problem, as compared with national trends. A 2021 study revealed that the estimated rate of alcohol and binge alcohol use in Rhode Island outstripped the national average, the state wrote.