Grocery and big-box stores in Colorado will no longer be able to apply for state licenses to sell hard alcohol under a bill signed Thursday, April 10, by Gov. Jared Polis. 

Senate Bill 33 is hailed as a win for independent liquor store owners and craft alcohol producers who’ve been reeling since the introduction of wine in grocery stores, the result of a 2022 state ballot measure. 

“The bill is truly a victory for independent retail liquor stores and the craft beverage industry and the economy it supports from the farm to the table,” wrote Chris Carran, a board member for Colorado Independent Liquor Stores United, in a text message. 

Carran, who owns a liquor store in Silverthorne, has repeatedly called attention to the disadvantages independent stores face compared to corporate chains, which are able to negotiate lower prices through bulk orders. She said small businesses are often where local brewers, winemakers and distillers stock their products. 

​​Currently, a few dozen grocery stores in Colorado hold a liquor license, including the Western Slope’s sole Costco, located in Gypsum, which began selling hard alcohol in 2018. Stores with existing licenses would be able to continue selling under the bill, but lawmakers say it will give independent businesses peace of mind for the future. 

“Without this law, we’d see more local job layoffs and more closures of these stores across the state because they’d be turfed out by big box stores,” said Sen. Dylan Roberts, D-Frisco, one of the bill’s prime sponsors. “Further, ensuring that more grocery stores aren’t selling hard liquor is the right thing for public safety and public health in our state.” 

Polis said he was reluctant to sign the bill, issuing a statement after its signing that he would have preferred an approach that “did not eliminate an entire liquor license type going forward or limit consumer choice and market access.”

The governor said he ultimately signed the measure because of its broad bipartisan support. The bill passed the House last week in a 55-8 vote after being approved in the Senate in February by a vote of 28-5. 

While Polis acknowledged small businesses may be facing challenges following voters’ decision to allow wine in grocery stores, he said he had “serious concerns that this legislation takes Colorado’s liquor laws backward, not forward.” 

He added that the bill “puts the state government in the position of picking winners and losers in an anticompetitive manner that prioritizes existing businesses and deprioritizes Colorado consumers.”

Senate Bill 33 was opposed by grocery and box-store chains, including Target and companies owned by Albertsons and Kroger. It also faced pushback from trade groups like the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States and consumer choice advocates.