Federal: A proposed bill, Brewer’s Employment and Excise Relief Act, would reduce the federal excise taxes for craft brewers in order to help them grow in the hope that they will provide jobs, revenue, and economic stimulus. This is a smart move since craft brewers have had a strong showing in the last five years. According to a recent report from the Brewer’s Association, craft brewers saw a 15% increase in production while big beers like Bud, AB-inBev and MillerCoors have suffered with the rest of the economy. The more government gets out of the way of these businesses the more likely they are to grow, and the bigger and more financially secure they are the more people they can afford to employ.
Alabama: A clear example of how deregulation equals stimulation is occurring in Alabama, a state with a grand total of 6 brewers. It’s not surprising there are so few. But a new law seems likely to encourage a few brewers to give Alabama a try. Thanks in particular to the efforts of grassroots beer-lovers, Free The Hops, which I detailed in an earlier post, Alabama legislators passed the Brewery Modernization Act in May. It was signed by the governor in June, and a few months later new breweries are reportedly making plans to open in the state. While Alabama still has really stupid laws regulating brewing, (like the one that limits brewpubs to historic buildings and counties where brewing occurred before prohibition) the new regulations allow brewers to offer tours, tastings, sell their beer on-premise whether or not they have a restaurant, and it allows brewpubs to sell their beer to wholesalers for retail sales where previously they were limited to selling on-premise.
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Public Outcry Forces Rule Reversal for Massachusetts Craft Brewers
Despite the recession, one segment of the US market, at least, has been steadily growing. This sector has supplied a constant boon of jobs, tax revenue and craft beer. Yes, I’m talking about beer. While “big beer,” brands like Bud, AB-inBev and MillerCoors, have suffered right along with the rest of the economy, craft breweries have seen increasing growth in sales and profit. Much of that growth is owed to states deregulating and reforming regulations to make it easier for small breweries to enter and stay in the market. Smart lawmakers around the nation have recognized the potential tax revenue and job creating power of the booming craft beer movement and have encouraged new brewers to open operations in their state. As a result of this competition for craft breweries, states have been repealing laws that have sat virtually untouched since prohibition. Unfortunately, some states are taking steps in the wrong direction, whether in an attempt to leach money from the burgeoning market or to protect other interests. One example is the attempt made last week by the Massachusetts Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission to enact a new licensing requirement on small brewers that would have driven them out of the market. Luckily, the move was quickly reversed in the wake of vocal opposition from around the country.
When the Massachusetts Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission (ABCC) announced the requirement that “farmer-brewers” in the state must obtain at least 50% of their ingredients from their farms, it became apparent that such a requirement would have forced most of those brewers to obtain a different kind of license. This license would be far more expensive and make it difficult, or impossible, for small breweries to compete in a market dominated by “big beer.” [click to continue…]
Sin taxes are often justified by claiming that the item/behavior taxes costs the taxpayer money. By applying a tax, the government claims it can pay for the public services that the behavior produces a need for as well as increasing the cost of the behavior thereby discouraging continuation. The most obvious example is the cigarette tax. Increased prices supposedly incentivize smokers to quit or at least temper their addiction, while revenues from the tax can pay for health services.
But what is more harmful and costs more taxpayer dollars than cigarettes, beer, and gambling combined? Out of control government spending! Sure, people without insurance
How many billions in bailout money have we spent in the last few months to bail out the blessed and chosen industries–$500 billion? More? Only to have those companies fail anyway? Now senate is talking about increasing the federal excise tax on beverages (covering beer, wine, and soft drinks) in order to pay for the proposed $1.5 trillion increase in health care costs for those without insurance.
While there are certainly better ways to get the uninsured insured than simply having the government dole out money, if that’s the way they want to play it, there’s a more morally acceptable way to get the cash in my mind—cut entire government programs. Hell, they could pay for the entire increase in health care costs (and then some) by simply doing away with the Drug Enforcement Agency’s $3 trillion budget. 
But no, the logic (using the term loosely) our legislators seem to be basing their decisions on is that people are more accepting of tax increases than of cutting programs. The real “sinners” aren’t brewers, drinkers, or pub owners so why should they be punished? The real sinners are legislators that haven’t courage enough to stop promising services, stop spending, and stop increasing their already corpulent budgets. You can send this generic protest letter to your Senator.
Maybe if we started taxing senators every time they suggested a new social program or tax increase we’d able to pay for everyones’ medical care three times over.
Your hosts Richard Morrison and Cord Blomquist welcome back special guest co-host Michelle Minton for Episode 35 of the LibertyWeek podcast. We begin with a celebration of human achievement and a peek into the realm of secret government documents. We then investigate how the White House is going to waste another $1 trillion of your money and how the British beer tax has managed to kill off 20,000 jobs. Finally we focus on the history of the scandal-addled Sen. Dodd of Connecticut and the future of U.S. Olympic glory.
BONUS BOOK FEATURE: We congratulate our good friend Steve Milloy on the publication of his new book, Green Hell: How Environmentalists Plan to Ruin Your Life and What You Can Do to Stop Them. The book is a one-of-a-kind, comprehensive takedown of the entire environmental movement that will open your eyes to a looming threat to our economy, our civil liberties, and the entire American way of life.
Your hosts Richard Morrison and Cord Blomquist bring you Episode 32 of the LibertyWeek podcast with special guest Sam Kazman and surprise guest co-host Jeremy Lott. We start by looking into the possible future of the Federal Communications Commission with nominee Julius Genachowski about to ascend to the chairmanship, and then take another stroll through the New Great Depression with high-level financial talks between unpopular British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and über-popular President Barack Obama. Oregonian brewers fight a proposed fifteen cents a pint tax in Beer News, and the Lady Madoff tries to stash away tens of millions from the feds in this edition of Scandal Watch. We hit our stride with an interview with CEI General Counsel Sam Kazman and his tales of the icy global warming rally staged earlier this week here in Washington, D.C. Finally, a little belt-tightening Olympic News from the USOC.
Listen here!
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