Brewing up a tax cut for U.S. beer makers
The economy of the USA is still in a recession and thousands of people are out of work. Some politicians, including two from Massachusetts, think small craft brewers can help.
Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., last week introduced legislation that would reduce the beer excise tax for small breweries around the country.
Senate Bill S. 3339, is a companion to a bill filed last December in the House of Representatives.
"Massachusetts started the small craft beer revolution, and we're proud of it," said Kerry.
The current small brewer tax rate was established in 1976 but has not been changed at all.
Today, a small brewer that produces less than 2 million barrels of beer (a barrel equals 31 gallons) must pay $7 per barrel on the first 60,000 barrels produced each year. Under Kerry's and Neal's plan, the rate would be reduced to $3.50 per barrel.
If production exceeds 60,000 barrels, a brewer currently has to pay the same $18 per barrel excise tax that even the largest breweries must pay. Under the proposed bill, that tax rate would be lowered to $16 per barrel from 60,000 barrels to 2 million barrels.
A definition of a small brewery would also increase, from those that make 2 million barrels or less to 6 million barrels.
"This is a jobs bill," said Paul Gatza, director of the Brewers Association. "It could be huge. What it will mean is jobs. It would provide a job for every $4,000 in government revenue which is cut."
"Small brewers employ people," he said. "It takes people to package beer, and to make beer, and to sell and distribute beer."
Jim Koch, president and founder of the Boston Beer Company, brewers of Samuel Adams, said the support from so many different politicians shows how important craft brewers can be for the economy.
The bill is even getting support from the large breweries such as Anheuser-Busch, as well as the agricultural states where barley malt and hops grow.
The jobs that will be created are not low-paying, minimum-wage type jobs, Koch said.
"They're good jobs. They're living-wage jobs," he said. "Craft brewing is the only American manufacturing sector that is not only growing, but beating the imports. Craft brewing is growing because our products are competing successfully against the imports. Try to think of a manufacturing structure where the American manufacturers are beating back the imports."
By Norman Miller
Based on the following sources:
http://www.wayneindependent.com/
PEGAS is a registered trademark of Novosibirskprodmash.
