A renewed push in Albany could reshape where New Yorkers buy alcohol, and put new competitive pressure on the independent liquor and wine shops that make up a large part of AARA’s membership. Bill S9032, sponsored by State Senator Luis Sepulveda, would amend the state’s Alcoholic Beverage Control Law to let grocery stores, and even bodegas and convenience stores, sell both wine and liquor.

Why it matters: This goes further than the decades-old “wine in grocery stores” fight, which only ever contemplated wine. S9032 and its companion Assembly bills would open both wine and spirits to general retailers, a fundamental change to New York’s three-tier system that independent package stores say could threaten their survival.

What the bill would do

  • Allow grocery, convenience, and similar retail outlets to obtain licenses to sell wine and liquor for off-premises consumption.
  • Roll back a restriction supporters call a “relic of the Prohibition era.” New York is currently one of only about 10 states that still bar grocery stores from selling wine and liquor.

The argument on each side

Supporters, largely supermarket chains and convenience operators, frame it as consumer convenience and point to Siena polling showing broad public support for wine in grocery stores.

Opponents, independent liquor and wine store owners, warn that letting large, high-volume grocers sell spirits would divert sales from the neighborhood shops that have operated under a one-license-per-owner system for generations, potentially forcing many to close. Because package stores cannot match a supermarket’s footprint or buying power, they argue the change would consolidate the market and cost small-business jobs.

Context: a related reform already passed

Not every 2026 change cuts against independents. The State Liquor Authority recently highlighted a new law allowing bars and restaurants to buy wine and liquor directly from local retail liquor and wine stores, a modest but real new revenue channel for package stores. AARA sees that retail-to-retail measure as the kind of “common-sense” reform that helps small operators, in contrast to S9032.

Status & what to watch

S9032 remains in committee. Similar wine-in-grocery efforts have repeatedly stalled in Albany for lack of votes, but the addition of full liquor sales and renewed sponsor interest have put the issue back in the spotlight for 2026. AARA will monitor committee action and mobilize member input if the bill advances.

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