ALCOHOL LAW ADVISOR
ALCOHOL LAW ADVISOR
Regulatory and Distribution Law Updates for the Alcohol Industry
ALCOHOL LAW ADVISOR
Regulatory and Distribution Law Updates for the Alcohol Industry
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Two New TTB Rulings Issued on General Use Formulas

by | Oct 10, 2016 |

On September 29, the Alcohol & Tobacco Tax & Trade Bureau (TTB) issued two new Rulings announcing the creation “general use formulas” for certain distilled spirits and agricultural wines. These general use formulas permit the production or importation of these products without the need to first obtain an approved formula (for domestic products) or a pre-import approval (PIA – for imported products) from TTB.

TTB Ruling 2016-2 exempts from the regulations’ formula and PIA requirements most “agricultural wines,” a category that generally encompasses wines fermented from materials other than fruit. Most notably, honey wine (mead) is now exempt from the requirement to file for a formula or a PIA prior to applying for label approval and/or introducing the product into commerce.

TTB Ruling 2016-3 exempts certain categories of distilled spirits from formula and PIA requirements. For certain categories of spirits made with less than 2.5 percent “harmless coloring, flavoring, or blending materials,” certain specific materials are now authorized without the need to obtain formula or PIA approval. The categories and materials are:

  1. Vodka made with sugar (up to 2g per liter) and/or citric acid (up to 1 g per liter);
  2. Rum made with sugar, brown sugar, molasses and/or caramel;
  3. Certain types of whiskies made with sugar, caramel and/or wine; and
  4. Certain types of brandy made with sugar, caramel, fruit from the same fruit used to make the brandy and/or wine fermented from the same fruit.

These changes represent a modest but helpful attempt to reduce the number of formula and PIA submissions filed by the industry.



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The BA’s Growing Influence on Capitol Hill

by and | Sep 29, 2016 | , , ,

How is it that the Brewers Association—an organization that has no political action committee, has employed a staff lobbyist for only 18 months, and has only had a strong presence in Washington since 2009—has gained significant traction among policymakers in the nation’s capital?

The BA is now a serious player in Washington. That is not by accident; it’s a carefully conceived strategy implemented by the BA board and senior staff—including president and CEO Bob Pease—over the last seven years that seeks to leverage the inherent strengths of America’s small craft brewers.

Read the full article, originally published in the September/October 2016 issue of The New Brewer.



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New TTB Final Rule Released on Denatured Alcohol

by | Sep 12, 2016 | ,

The new TTB Final Rule that was released in the Federal Register on August 20, 2016 will partially streamline the use of non-beverage alcohol products in the US. While statutory requirements do not permit TTB to completely de-regulate the distribution and sale of denatured alcohol, the attached rule, among other things:

  1. Reclassifies a number of “specially denatured alcohol” (“SDA”) formulas as “completely denatured alcohol” (“CDA”). As the regulatory requirements for distributing CDA are much less stringent than those that apply to SDA, these reclassifications amount to a lessening of regulatory burdens for companies dealing in such products.
  2. Establishes additional “general use formulas,” which permit the production of SDA products without the need for a specific TTB formula approval.
  3. Exempts distilled spirits plant (“DSP”) operators from the requirements to obtain an additional permit to produce and handle SDA products within the bonded premises of a DSP.
  4. Makes a variety of technical changes and deletions to the regulations in order to meet what TTB views as current industry practice.

While the TTB reforms do not deregulate SDA use to the extent that most producers and users would like, the Final Rule represents a welcome step in the direction of deregulation and simplification. A substantially more radical deregulation of such products would require statutory changes and therefore are beyond the realm of what TTB can accomplish on its own.



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FDA Brewery Inspections

by and | Jul 27, 2016 |

Most breweries have numerous deal­ings with the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) and un­derstand the need to comply with TTB regulations; this includes preparation for TTB audits and inspections. But the TTB is not the only federal agency with the authority to con­duct a brewery inspection.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also inspects food facilities, including breweries, to ensure they comply with FDA regulatory require­ments. The FDA may conduct inspections as the result of routine surveillance, product quality is­sues, consumer complaints, or recalls. The agen­cy also may conduct inspections to follow up on a previous inspection or an FDA enforcement ac­tion. The FDA also contracts with state and local food protection programs to conduct inspections and provide certification and training.

Read the full article, originally published in the July/August 2016 issue of The New Brewer.



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Trademark Tips for Small Distillers

by | Apr 20, 2016 | ,

What’s in a name? (Or a slogan, logo, symbol or other source-identifying device?) Well, turns out a lot. While the craft spirits industry is a tight knit and collegial community, businesses must strive to create a unique and distinctive place in the market that makes their products stand out from the rest. For small distillers, who may have leaner advertising budgets than the spirits giants, one effective way to plant your flat in the ground and say “This is who we are, come and join us!” is through trademarks.

A trademark is any word, name, symbol, logo and/or device the identifies the goods and services of one party, and distinguishes such offerings from those of others.

Below we provide some tips and recommendations for small distillers to consider when selecting and protecting trademarks.

Read the full article (originally published in the Spring 2016 issue of Artisan Spirit).



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Recent Revisions to Internal Revenue Code Affecting Alcohol Beverages

by | Feb 11, 2016 |

In December 2015, President Obama signed into law the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 (PATH Act).  The PATH Act amends several provisions of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (IRC) administered by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB).  Those amendments relate to alcohol excise tax due dates and bond requirements, the definition of wine eligible for treatment as “hard cider” for tax purposes, and cover over of rum excise taxes imported from Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.  In January 2016, TTB issued an announcement concerning the IRC amendments.

Starting with the first calendar quarter of 2017, taxpayers who anticipate being liable for no more than $1,000 in alcohol excise taxes (for sales of distilled spirits, beer and wine) for the calendar year, and who were not liable for more than $1,000 in such excise taxes the prior year, may make excise tax payments annually (rather than the current quarterly payment requirement).  Further, beginning the first calendar quarter of 2017, taxpayers eligible to pay taxes annually under the new provisions, as well as taxpayers currently eligible for quarterly payments of alcohol excise taxes (i.e., taxpayers anticipating being liable for no more than $50,000 in alcohol excise taxes, and who were not liable for more than $50,000 in such excise taxes the prior year), need not file a bond.

The PATH Act also modifies the definition of wine eligible for the tax rate applicable to “hard cider” by (1) increasing the allowable alcohol content from 0.5 percent to less than 7 percent alcohol by volume (ABV) to 0.5 percent to less than 8.5 percent ABV; (2) increasing the allowable carbonation level from 0.392 grams of carbon dioxide per 100 milliliters of wine to 0.64 grams; and (3) expanding the definition by allowing the use of pears, pear juice concentrate and pear products and flavorings in hard cider.  These changes apply to hard cider removed after December 31, 2016.  The hard cider definition changes do not affect other requirements applicable to ciders above 7 percent ABV under the Federal Alcohol Administration Act, including requirements relating to labeling, advertising and permits.

Another section of the PATH Act extends the temporary increase in the limit on cover over of rum excise taxes to Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands from January 1, 2015 to January 1, 2017.  This amendment applies to distilled spirits brought into the US after December 31, 2014.



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TTB Publishes Projected Regulatory Agenda as Part of Government’s Unified Agenda

by | Jan 4, 2016 | , , ,

As it does twice per year, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) recently published its projected Regulatory Agenda as part of the federal government’s “Unified Agenda.”  Links to the U.S. Department of Treasury’s portions of the Unified Agenda appear below.

TTB’s latest contribution to the Unified Agenda lists six priority projects that it hopes to publish rulemaking notices on in 2016:

  1. Revise TTB’s import and export regulations to make them compatible with the International Trade Data System (ITDS).  ITDS aims to create a single electronic exchange portal for all import and export activities.  TTB expects to propose these new regulations by March 2016.
  2. Revise TTB’s labeling regulations for wine, distilled spirits, and malt beverages (beer) to eliminate outmoded, ineffective and excessively burdensome regulations.  TTB plans to propose these revised regulations for industry and public comment sometime before the end of 2016.
  3. Finalize new regulations on specially denatured and completely denatured alcohols.  Most notably, the new regulations would re-classify many specially denatured alcohol products as completely denatured alcohols – greatly reducing the amount of regulatory oversight over such products.  The final regulations would build off a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking published in June of 2013, and TTB expects to finalize these regulations shortly.
  4. Propose new regulations to permit the self-certification of flavors and other non-beverage articles as eligible for “drawback.”  By permitting industry self-certification, TTB would greatly reduce the number of regulatory filings required of the flavor, extract and fragrance industries.  TTB expects to publish proposed regulations before June 2016, coupled with a “Temporary Rule” permitting industry members to begin self-certification immediately.
  5. Revise the Distilled Spirits Plant (DSP) regulations to reduce the TTB-mandated monthly reports required by DSP operators from four to two.  $11,000 to $16,000.Already subject to a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in 2011, TTB plans to press ahead with a “Supplemental” Notice by March 2016.
  6. Make an inflation-adjustment to the civil penalties for violations of the Alcohol Beverage Labeling Act of 1988, which mandated the now-familiar Government Warning on all alcohol beverage labels.  TTB plans to publish a Final Rule in 2016 to raise the maximum penalty for violations from $11,000 to $16,000.

In addition to the six priority items above, TTB’s portion of the Unified Agenda includes dozens of other rulemaking projects, from those completed in the most recent fiscal year to issues expected to be first raised in a rulemaking notice during the following year.  As with prior years, the industry must view TTB’s expected publication and completion dates with a great degree of caution, as resource challenges, political pressure and other factors often delay the rulemaking process.

Click here to view the Statement of Priorities.

Click here to view the All Treasury Agenda.



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Product Recalls

by | Dec 31, 2015 | , , ,

Potential product recall situations rank among the most stressful that a producer can face. Things move fast and decisions must be made with less-than-perfect information. While no preparation will render such situations easy or routine, a producer can reduce the stress level and help navigate this “worst-case” scenario by understanding the process and taking certain steps to prepare. The article linked below aims to familiarize producers with the recall processes and situations while suggesting areas where preparation can help.

Read the full article, originally published in the Winter 2015-16 issue of Artisan Spirit Magazine.



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TTB Publishes List of Exempt Ingredients

by | Dec 18, 2015 |

Yesterday, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) published Ruling 2015-1. It re-states and supersedes Ruling 2014-4, notably by adding more than 50 new ingredients that a brewer can use in beer without the need to obtain an approved formula (or a pre-import approval for imported beer) from TTB.

With this new Ruling, TTB has exempted the vast majority of flavoring materials added to beer, including many fruits and spices, sugars, chocolate, tea and coffee. It does not (and cannot due to the language of existing regulations) exempt flavorings and extracts, however, which continue to require formula approval prior to use. In other words, while a brewer can add watermelon, watermelon juice, watermelon puree or watermelon concentrate to a beer without obtaining formula approval, adding a watermelon flavor still requires formula approval.



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Labeling and Advertising Gluten-Free Beer

by | Jul 23, 2015 | , ,

In the past decade, millions of Americans have converted to gluten-free diets. Originally a practice dictated solely by the medical needs of those who suffer from celiac disease, gluten-free has entered the mainstream. This article will explore the evolving and somewhat uncertain status of labeling and advertising beer as “gluten-free.”

Read the full article, originally published in the July/August 2015 issue of The New Brewer.



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