The Brewers Association (BA) has tapped Nancy Palmer and Sam DeWitt to lead its state government affairs efforts.
“We are honored to add Nancy and Sam to the Brewers Association government affairs team,” BA president and CEO Bob Pease said in a press release. “With their combined expertise working alongside general counsel Marc Sorini and state and regulatory affairs manager Pete Johnson, we are positioned to effectively support Brewers Association members and state guilds on government affairs issues at the state level during a time of considerable change.”
As the state government affairs managers – newly created roles within the BA – the two will support the trade group’s state-level legislative initiatives in coordination with brewery members and state guilds. Key issues to be tackled at the state level include distribution restrictions, franchise law, direct-to-consumer shipping and retail licensing.
Palmer will begin her role in mid-April, while DeWitt started last month, a BA spokesperson told Brewbound.
DeWitt joined the BA after nearly five years in various roles with Compassion & Choices, a Portland, Oregon-based non-profit that promotes patient-centric, end-of-life care. Prior to that, he also worked as the director of communications for the Colorado Health Care Association and as chief of staff to Colorado state Rep. Diane Mitsch Bush, according to his LinkedIn profile.
“My work has always been focused on giving a voice to community members,” DeWitt said in the release. “Small and independent craft brewers have been faced with many challenges over the past few years, and the BA has a strong reputation and impressive track record when it comes to advocating for them at the federal and state government level. I look forward [to] working with the government affairs team and state guilds to alleviate some of those hurdles and help brewers flourish.”
Before joining the BA, Palmer was the senior director of government affairs for the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, a role she entered in October 2019. Palmer previously spent six and a half years as the executive director of the Georgia Craft Brewers Guild, a role she originated.
“Through my work with the Georgia Craft Brewers Guild, I quadrupled guild membership and secured major legislative and administrative victories, including a 2017 law to allow Georgia’s breweries to sell beer directly to the public,” Palmer said in the release. “I’m looking forward to continuing the fight for small and independent brewers through my work with the Brewers Association.”
The BA recognized Palmer for her advocacy work in Georgia with the 2018 F.X. Matt Defense of the Industry Award. She was also named among Georgia Trend’s list of Notable Georgians twice and featured among the Atlanta 500 list by Atlanta Magazine.
Palmer and DeWitt join the BA as it builds up its staff after the pandemic forced it to lay off 35% of its employees due to the loss of revenue from in-person events. Among those whose jobs were cut was former state brewery guilds manager Acacia Coast, who coordinated with guilds on state issues. However, the new roles will differ from Coast’s as state legislative issues have become more pressing for craft brewers.
“Having dedicated state government affairs professionals is something new for BA,” the spokesperson said. “As we become more engaged in helping guilds and our members at the state level, we expect to learn and will adjust our approach as needed.”