(Wines&Vines) - Step-by-step, state-by-state, direct shipping to wine consumers continues to advance across the map. ShipCompliant’s ninth annual Direct Shipping Virtual Conference today addressed progress and pitfalls of changing regulations across the United States. Jeff Carroll, vice president of product for the Boulder-based supplier of online compliance tools, led the online session.

Federal and state regulations and reporting hinder commerce with complex and sometimes conflicting multi-jurisdictional requirements and potentially costly fines. Within the wine and beverage industry, a sub-industry of compliance professionals continues to thrive: Wines & Vines’ online Buyers Guide currently lists 44 compliance services. Larger wineries may employ staff to track the minefield of regulatory and fiscal penalties, but for smaller operations it’s a difficult field to navigate. ShipCompliant’s goal is to ease the process with programs that simplify licensing, taxation and changing shipping laws.

According to Carroll, 45 states now allow direct-to-consumer (DtC) shipments of on-site orders purchased at the winery. Off-site wine orders placed through websites, email or phone can be shipped into 41 states. Regardless of the restrictions, most states require wineries to obtain permits, pay sales and excise taxes. Most limit the volume of wine shipped to any consumer (or address) within a year, and wineries without a brick-and-mortar license currently may ship to only 14 states.

The biggest DtC news in 2014 was Massachusetts’ adoption of “a workable” DtC law. “Although it’s not the largest in population, Massachusetts is a highly desirable market” for wine shipping, Carroll said. “It’s an affluent, wine drinking state.”