Legislative, Government Affairs & Legal Updates

Stay informed on the latest beer industry, legislative, government affairs and legal news, including updates on the Brewers Association and NBWA. Understand the evolving beverage alcohol regulatory and legal environment that can directly impact your distribution, retail efforts, intellectual property, packaging and ingredients.

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Featured Legislative, Government Affairs & Legal Updates Content

Craft Navigating a ‘Perfect Storm’ of Waning Consumer Demand, Distributor Disinterest and Dried-Up Draft Sales

Craft Navigating a ‘Perfect Storm’ of Waning Consumer Demand, Distributor Disinterest and Dried-Up Draft Sales

Craft beer has entered “no to negative growth territory,” Brewers Association (BA) chief economist Bart Watson said during a year-end webinar last week. “We were in double-digit growth as recently as 2014, 2015, and then we moved into kind of a more developed, slow, single-digit growth rate,” Watson said. “COVID hit, and we had the worst year in craft history in 2020 with a partial bounce back in 2021.

Additional Content

Proposed Colorado Bill Would Double Bev-Alc Taxes to Fund Addiction Recovery Efforts

Proposed Colorado Bill Would Double Bev-Alc Taxes to Fund Addiction Recovery Efforts

A pair of alcohol-adjacent bills have been introduced in the Colorado Legislature. One (SB24-181) seeks to create a tax on beverage-alcohol products distributed in the state to fund “alcohol and related substance use disorder prevention, early intervention, treatment, harm reduction and recovery services” across Colorado.

Brewers Association Reveals 2024 Award Winners

Brewers Association Reveals 2024 Award Winners

The Brewers Association (BA) announced the recipients of its 2024 awards yesterday, recognizing individuals for their contributions to the craft brewing industry.

Comment Period Deadline Approaches on Potential Alcohol Beverage Labeling and Advertising Changes

Comment Period Deadline Approaches on Potential Alcohol Beverage Labeling and Advertising Changes

The deadline to file written comments in the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau’s review of potential rules and regulations changes for alcoholic beverage labeling and advertising is set to expire this Friday (March 29). Among the changes under consideration are mandatory disclosures for alcohol content, nutritional information, ingredients and major allergens.

CCBA Legislative Update: Beer Catering Permits, Amazon’s Tied House Challenge

CCBA Legislative Update: Beer Catering Permits, Amazon’s Tied House Challenge

California craft breweries may soon have an easier time selling their beer at special events beyond their taproom walls, thanks to the California Craft Brewers Association’s (CCBA) sponsored bill in 2024. AB 2174 would “authorize a licensed beer manufacturer to apply for, and the department to issue, a beer caterer’s permit for the sale of beer manufactured by or for the licensee for consumption at specified locations and events, including, among others, conventions, sporting events, and trade exhibits.”

BrewDog Complaint Against BBC Dismissed

BrewDog Complaint Against BBC Dismissed

The Office of Communications (Ofcom), the U.K.’s communications regulator, has dismissed a complaint from Brewdog and CEO James Watt against the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), which claimed the BBC treated and portrayed Watt and his company “unjustly or unfairly” in a 2022 expose, BBC reported.