Dear Members of the Pennsylvania Delegation,
On behalf of the Brewers of Pennsylvania (BOP) and the more than 300 breweries in the Commonwealth, we are writing to request that you co-sponsor the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act of 2019 which would make permanent the existing excise tax structure that was put into place beginning in 2018. As you may know, in the last Congress, this legislation garnered more than 300 House cosponsors and 56 Senate cosponsors. As a result of this broad, bipartisan and bicameral support, it was included in the Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017, but its inclusion only extended until the end of 2019. This legislation, introduced by Congressman Ron Kind (D-MI) and Congressman Mike Kelly (R-PA) in the House and Senators Blunt (R-MO) and Wyden (D-OR) in the Senate, aims to make this structure permanent.
This legislation enjoys the support of the entire alcoholic beverage industry – big and small brewers, wineries, distillers of all sizes and beer, wine and spirits wholesalers. It is the first time the entire industry has come together to support a single piece of legislation, and there are literally thousands of businesses that are helped by this structure and making it permanent will only enhance the ability of these businesses to grow.
As you know, in our Commonwealth, our breweries employ more than 10,000 Pennsylvanians and generate more than $1 billion in economic activity every year. We have heard countless stories of how this new structure has allowed breweries to expand their workforce, purchase needed capital equipment, increase charitable works in the community and grow production to meet increasing demand. You may also know that the Commonwealth leads the nation in the amount of craft beer produced, so the positive impact of this recalibration of their excise tax has been a tremendous help to the economic base of the Commonwealth. Conversely, allowing this structure to sunset and revert back to the old system would be devasting to many small businesses and thwart the success of the last year.
We are hopeful that you will support our industry by co-sponsoring this important legislation.
If you have any questions about this legislation, you can contact us directly. We thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Christian T. Lampe President
