An Act relative to a local option excise on the sale of alcoholic beverages for municipal substance abuse prevention and public health programs

This bill allows Massachusetts cities and towns to choose whether to impose a new 2% tax on the sale of alcoholic beverages intended for off-premises consumption and the alcohol portion of restaurant meals. The revenue generated from this local option excise must be used specifically to fund municipal substance abuse prevention and public health programs within the adopting communities. Vendors collecting the tax would report sales by location, and the state would distribute the collected funds back to the participating municipalities based on their respective sales volumes. The measure takes effect only after a municipality formally accepts it, giving local governments the choice to opt in or out of the program.