Florida state laws, as well as those of many other states, currently
prohibit the mail order purchase and importation of CA wines, but
efforts are ongoing in the federal courts to have such laws
effectively nullified. If successful, internet wine shoppers from all
50 states would be able to place orders. As of this writing, only the
following states permit the mail order purchase of CA wines: AK, CA,
CO, HI, IA, ID, IL, MN, MO, NH, ND, NM, NV, OR, TX, VA, WA, WI, WV and
WY.

What's the current status of the federal court case(s) on this matter?

Nautico ?

A year ago the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to consolidate three
different cases involving interstate shipments of wine -- Granholm vs.
Heald ; Michigan Beer & Wine Wholesalers Association vs. Heald ; and
Swedenburg vs. Kelly.  The cases involved New York, Michigan, Florida,
Indiana, North Carolina, Texas and Virginia.  The court decided to
consolidate the cases and make a decision, in part because of
conflicts in federal appeals court rulings.

USA Today
?Supreme Court says wine import fight is ripe for a ruling ?
(Biskupic, May 24, 2004)
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2004-05-24-wine_x.htm


The case was decided on May 16, 2005 and  appears as Granholm vs.
Heald. It invalidated the laws of both Michigan and New York
restricting the shipment of wine across state lines but its precedent
covers the other states as well.  The decision is in Adobe Acrobat
format but can?t be directly linked, so you?ll want to go to this page
to find and download the 73-page decision:

U.S. Supreme Court
?2004 TERM OPINIONS OF THE COURT?
http://www.supremecourtus.gov/opinions/04slipopinion.html


The invalidating of the laws means that states have to re-craft
whatever laws they have to meet this decision.  New York has just done
so, putting it in the camp of what are now 29 states that allow mail
order shipments of wine:

The New York Times
?Opening New York to Internet Wine Sales,? (Tedeschi, July 25, 2005)
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/25/technology/25ecom.html

Google search strategy:
Wine + ?Supreme Court?
?Granholm vs. Heald?

If we?ve missed any aspect of what you?re seeking, please let us know
via a Clarification Request.

Best regards,

Omnivorous-GA

---

Request for Answer Clarification by nautico-ga on 30 Jul 2005 09:52 PDT

When is Florida expected to emulate New York in changing its law? Is
there currently a bill in the FL state legislature designed to do
this?

---

Clarification of Answer by omnivorous-ga on 30 Jul 2005 10:30 PDT

Nautico --

You'll have to wait for the 2006 Florida legislative session.

Even before the Supreme Court decision in May 2005, Florida (and other
states) were having bills introduced to counter the weak area of the
wine ban.  Sen. Paula Dockery (R-Lakeland) and Sen Burt Saunders
(R-Naples) had both introduced bills in the 2005 session.

Wine Spectator
?Several States Consider Direct Wine Shipments,? (Nigro & Fauchild, March 1, 2005)
http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Trade_News/Trade_News_Feature_Display/0,3697,2817,00.html

(Note that if you can?t access Wine Spectator directly, you can find
the article near the top of a Google search for: Florida + ?wine
shipments?)

Those two bills ? numbered 906 and 480 -- died during the 2005
session, which is now over.  If you look at the right-hand column of
the legislature?s page here you?ll find out what happened to each
bill.  Bill 480 was withdrawn and Bill 906 died in committee ?

Florida Senate
?Session Bills for 2005?
http://www.flsenate.gov/Session/index.cfm?Year=2005&Chamber=Senate&Tab=session&Submenu=1

Best regards,

Omnivorous-GA

Good answer. Thanks.

Here's the direct link:
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/16may20050800/www.supremecourtus.gov/opinions/04pdf/03-1116.pdf