Legislative, Government Affairs & Legal Updates

Stay informed on the latest beer industry, legislative, government affairs and legal news, including updates on the Brewers Association and NBWA. Understand the evolving beverage alcohol regulatory and legal environment that can directly impact your distribution, retail efforts, intellectual property, packaging and ingredients.

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Featured Legislative, Government Affairs & Legal Updates Content

Bart Watson: If You’re Trying to Ride Out This Wave, ‘You Should Probably Reconsider’

Bart Watson: If You’re Trying to Ride Out This Wave, ‘You Should Probably Reconsider’

Anyone looking for an answer to when craft’s current era of compounding hurdles and declines will come to an end received a reality check Wednesday during Brewers Association (BA) president and CEO Bart Watson’s state of the industry address, held at the start of Day 2 of the Craft Brewers Conference (CBC) in Indianapolis.

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NBWA Annual Convention Comes Amid Continued Wholesaler Consolidation, and Legal Battles Between Suppliers and Distributors

NBWA Annual Convention Comes Amid Continued Wholesaler Consolidation, and Legal Battles Between Suppliers and Distributors

The nation’s beer wholesalers and beer industry executives will meet in Las Vegas this week for the National Beer Wholesalers Association’s (NBWA) annual convention, and the meeting’s arrival comes amid turbulence. Large wholesalers continue to consolidate within the middle tier, while at least one New England craft-focused wholesaler has thrown in the towel. The pace of consolidation chugs on even as President Joe Biden has tasked the Treasury with examining competition within the beer industry at large, and that’s led to comments from at least two trade groups calling into question these mergers’ effect on the competitive landscape.

In Rhode Island, Judge Orders Jack’s Abby-Atlantic Lawsuit to Go to Trial

In Rhode Island, Judge Orders Jack’s Abby-Atlantic Lawsuit to Go to Trial

Jack’s Abby Craft Lagers and Atlantic Importing and Distributing of Rhode Island will face off in a courtroom as the lawsuit between the two companies will go to trial, a Rhode Island Superior Court judge ruled today. In the interim, the Framingham, Massachusetts-based craft brewery must resume selling its products to Atlantic RI for distribution within the Ocean State, according to an order from Justice Brian P. Stern.

BA Legislative Update: SBA Expands COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program; Trade Org Lobbies for Restaurant Revitalization Fund Replenishment

BA Legislative Update: SBA Expands COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program; Trade Org Lobbies for Restaurant Revitalization Fund Replenishment

Updates to the EIDL program include an increase of the loan cap from $500,000 to $2 million, the addition of a two-year repayment deferral period, an expansion of eligible uses for funds, and the creation of a 30-day exclusivity window to approve and disburse loans smaller than $500,000 to focus on the smallest businesses, according to a Brewers Association (BA) blog post.

Regulatory Roundup: Beverage Alcohol Trade Groups Ask Senate Appropriations Committee to Increase TTB Funding; FDA and CDC Warn Consumers of Delta-8 THC Risks

Regulatory Roundup: Beverage Alcohol Trade Groups Ask Senate Appropriations Committee to Increase TTB Funding; FDA and CDC Warn Consumers of Delta-8 THC Risks

Beer industry trade groups are calling on the leaders of the U.S. Senate appropriations committee to allocate additional funds to the Department of the Treasury’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau’s (TTB) 2022 fiscal year budget. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued warnings this week about the potential risks of Delta-8 — a form of the psychoactive cannabinoid tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

Boston Beer Facing Investor Lawsuit Related to Truly Hard Seltzer Slowdown

Boston Beer Facing Investor Lawsuit Related to Truly Hard Seltzer Slowdown

Boston Beer Company’s hard seltzer woes are spilling over into the legal system. The maker of Truly Hard Seltzer, the second best-selling hard seltzer on the market, is now facing a proposed class action lawsuit for allegedly failing to disclose the deceleration in sales of Truly to investors.