FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Abby Cohen (on behalf of the Brewers Association) [email protected] (646) 695-7044
Kind recognized for support of America’s craft brewers
WASHINGTON • July 24, 2018—The Brewers Association (BA)—the not-for-profit trade association dedicated to small and independent American brewers—presented Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI) with its Legislative Champion Award. Rep. Kind was among five deserving legislators recognized for their leadership, dedication and support of small and independent craft brewers. The award was presented by Bob Pease, president & CEO of the Brewers Association and Tami Plourde and Joe Katchever, co-owners of Pearl Street Brewing in LaCrosse, Wisconsin.
Rep. Kind was the lead Democratic sponsor of the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act (CBMTRA) bill (H.R. 747) in the House, which recalibrates the federal excise tax for breweries and other alcohol producers. More than half of the U.S. Congress supported the bipartisan legislation, with 56 Senate co-sponsors of the bill (S. 236) and 303 representatives co-sponsoring the House version. Thanks in large parts to his efforts, America’s small brewers—operating in almost every congressional district in the nation—can reinvest in their businesses, employees and communities.
“The effort to bring meaningful federal excise tax relief to small brewers has been a decade-long initiative for the Brewers Association. We could have not achieved it without the leadership, passion and forward thinking of legislators like Rep. Kind,” said Bob Pease, president & CEO, Brewers Association. “He understands the positive impacts small and independent brewers have on their local communities and our national economy. The tax relief for our brewers is palpable and we look forward to working with him to make the two-year provision permanent.”
Wisconsin is home to 160 craft breweries1. The industry supports nearly 13,000 workers and contributed $2 billion to the economy in 2016. According to a recent excise tax recalibration survey conducted by the Brewers Association, breweries are utilizing their federal excise tax savings in a tangible way.
“Ninety-six percent of breweries responding to the survey found the lower federal excise tax beneficial to their brewery,” said Bart Watson, chief economist, Brewers Association. “More specifically, 70 percent indicated they would be increasing their economic development by purchasing new equipment, upgrading their tasting rooms and breweries, or moving to new buildings. In addition, more than half of respondents indicated they would be hiring new employees.”
More information about CBMTRA can be found at BrewersAssociation.org.
