H5306 • 2025

An Act to ensure alcoholic beverages licensing economic opportunity and geographic equity

Active

The official status still shows this bill as active or still awaiting another formal step.

Sponsor: Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure (J)
Last action: 2026-04-23
Official status: Referred to House Committee on Bills in the Third Reading
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

An Act to ensure alcoholic beverages licensing economic opportunity and geographic equity

An Act to ensure alcoholic beverages licensing economic opportunity and geographic equity Status: Referred to House Committee on Bills in the Third Reading

What This Bill Does

An Act to ensure alcoholic beverages licensing economic opportunity and geographic equity Status: Referred to House Committee on Bills in the Third Reading

Limits and Unknowns

This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

2026-04-23 House
Committee reported that the matter be placed in the Orders of the Day for the next sitting
2026-04-23 House
Rules suspended
2026-04-23 House
Read second and ordered to a third reading
2026-03-30 House
Reported from the committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure
2026-03-30 House
New draft of H4597
2026-03-30 House
Bill reported favorably by committee and referred to the committee on House Steering, Policy and Scheduling

Official Summary Text

An Act to ensure alcoholic beverages licensing economic opportunity and geographic equity
Status:
Referred to House Committee on Bills in the Third Reading

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

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Bill H.5306

SECTION 1. Chapter 138 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2024 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after section 16D the following new section:-

Section 16E. No new premises located within a radius of five hundred feet of a premises licensed for the sale of alcoholic beverages not to be drunk on premises may be licensed for the sale of alcoholic beverages not be drunk on premises unless the local licensing authority determines in writing and after a hearing that the new premises are not detrimental to public health, safety, and the general welfare of the community; provided, however, this provision shall not apply to the transfer of a license from premises located within said distance to other premises located therein, if it is transferred to a location not less remote from the existing licensee. Any applicant who has been denied a license under this section shall have the right to an appeal under section 67.

SECTION 2.

This act shall apply to new licenses issued on or after January 1, 2027.

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