Advocacy groups and parents of teens killed in alcohol-related incidents this week sent a pair of Mother's Day appeals to Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley urging him to veto a bill that would treat sweetened "alcopop" drinks the same as beer for regulatory and tax purposes.

The groups called on O'Malley to kill SB 745, an alcohol-industry backed measure that seeks to enshrine sweet alcoholic drinks like Mike's Lemonade as beer in state regulations, even though the products often carry the names of liquor companies like Bacardi and Seagram's and get much of their alcohol content from distilling, not brewing. As in many states, beer is also taxed at a much lower rate than liquor in Maryland.

A letter signed by the parents of eight Maryland teens killed in underage-drinking incidents urged O'Malley to "stop this dangerous special-interest bill" that they said helps the alcohol industry target young drinkers.

"You and only you hold the power to stop this terrible bill," the parents wrote. "We do not want another mother or father to suffer as we have and celebrate Mother’s Day in such permanent pain. We ask that you help prevent more deaths and injuries by standing up to the alcohol lobby and veto the alcopops legislation now."

In a separate letter signed by groups like MADD, Students Against Destructive Behaviors (SADD), the American Public Health Association, and the American College of Emergency Physicians, advocates praised O'Malley for postponing a scheduled signing of the bill.

"Alcopops are not beer," the letter stated. "They are far more closely associated with a low alcohol spirits than a beer product. The alcohol content it is masked by sweet, fruity additive flavors, which has led some to refer to these them as 'kiddie booze.'"

"Just because other states have this law as a result of a coordinated campaign by the alcohol industry is no excuse for signing this bill," the groups wrote. "Let us work together to make Maryland the leader in the nation on preventing underage drinking. Your veto of SB 745 is the first step."