The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission got a full top to bottom review under the sunset commission. Many craft brewers are hoping the recommendations that come out of it will make doing business easier. Austin Beerworks’ Co-founder Adam DeBower said one thing that could come up is regulations covering beers and ales.
Under current Texas law, any brew over 5{cab9fa400b96d18ee9b67c5bd09f7eedb887e4411faf01adbc114fccaedc3245} alcohol by volume is an ale, under 5{cab9fa400b96d18ee9b67c5bd09f7eedb887e4411faf01adbc114fccaedc3245} is a beer. For brewers, each kind of drink has a separate license and is taxed differently. DeBower explained, Texas is the only state that makes that distinction and hopes regulators will streamline the process and get rid of the need for extra licenses.
But after the commission wraps up on making recommendations, its all handed off to legislators, DeBower fears the bills that come from the sunset process could be tainted by add-ons or riders that have nothing to do with TABC or the industry at all, making it less likely that brewers will be rid of the antiquated rules.
(Photo:Shutterstock/Trong Nguyen)
