Cheers to a New Year: California’s New Alcoholic Beverage Laws for 2022
Alcoholic Beverages Law Blog
by Susan Johnson
2y ago
As we look forward to 2022, we have summarized key alcoholic beverage legal changes in California from the past year that may affect your business. The below list of alcoholic beverage laws either went into effect immediately late in 2021 or went into effect on January 1, 2022. The legal changes span from extending pandemic relief, to permitting licensed wineries to open an additional off-site tasting room, to legalization of to-go cocktails, to eased restrictions on charitable giving, among many others. If your business involves the manufacture or sale of alcoholic beverages, odds are good th ..read more
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Washington State Liquor Control Board Extends Pandemic-Related Privileges for Licensees
Alcoholic Beverages Law Blog
by Susan Johnson
2y ago
On December 8, 2021, the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (“LCB”) approved New Rules to extend temporary pandemic-related licensee privileges for to-go orders and permanently amend the food service requirement for liquor licensees. The New Rules are clearly a step towards providing licensees additional flexibility to sell alcohol products in light of the ongoing pandemic. The New Rules extend and amend endorsements for certain “to-go” products permitting licensees additional flexibility for selling to-go alcoholic beverages. First, the New Rules permit delivery by a third-party inste ..read more
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Significant Tax Credits for the Alcoholic Beverage Industry
Alcoholic Beverages Law Blog
by Chris Hermann
2y ago
Late last year, the President signed the Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Act of 2020 which made most of the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act (“CBMTRA”) provisions permanent starting January 1, 2021.  The CBMTRA makes extensive changes to the federal excise taxes on wine, distilled spirits, and beer. I. WINE The CBMTRA radically changed the previous small producer tax credit that was available to certain small, domestic wine producers.  Now, all producers may qualify for a tax credit, regardless of the size of the producer, rather than only small domestic producers ..read more
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The Restaurant Revitalization Fund Eligibility and Next Steps
Alcoholic Beverages Law Blog
by Kristin Russell
3y ago
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (the “Act”), signed by President Biden on March 11, 2021, includes within Section 5003 a $28.6 billion appropriation to establish a Restaurant Revitalization Fund (the “RRF”) to provide tax-free federal grants to food and beverage businesses hard hit by the pandemic. These grants may be applied to eligible expenses already incurred and for additional expenses over the remainder of the year (or longer if the covered period is extended by the Small Business Administration (the “SBA”)), and are available to entities ranging from food carts to full-service rest ..read more
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State Water Board to Hold Upcoming Winery General Order Fees Stakeholder Meeting and Public Training Workshop Webinars in March and April 2021
Alcoholic Beverages Law Blog
by Melissa Foster
3y ago
As part of implementation of its Final Adopted Winery General Order, the State Water Resources Control Board (“SWRCB” or “Board”) will be holding a Winery General Order Fees Stakeholder Meeting on March 15 from 1:00-3:00 PM via Webcast. The updated notice for the Fees Stakeholder Meeting can be found here. In addition to the Fees Stakeholder Meeting, the SWRCB is planning a series of Winery General Order Public Training Workshop Webinars for the public to learn about enrollment eligibility, schedule, and requirements under the Winery General Order. The first Workshop Webinar is scheduled for A ..read more
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Update: State Water Board Adopts Final Winery General Order
Alcoholic Beverages Law Blog
by Melissa Foster
3y ago
At its January 20, 2021 Board meeting, the State Water Resources Control Board (“SWRCB” or “Board”) adopted its final General Waste Discharge Requirements (“WDRs”) for Winery Process Water (“Winery Order”) and associated Resolution for the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) Mitigated Negative Declaration. As a brief background, on July 3, 2020 the SWRCB released a draft Winery Order to the public for comment (see: July 15, 2020 blogpost on proposed General Order and July 20, 2020 blogpost on noticed stakeholder meetings).  The July 3, 2020 draft incorporated feedback from stake ..read more
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Department of Labor Publishes Final Rule Regarding Tip Pools and Tip Credits
Alcoholic Beverages Law Blog
by John Dudrey
3y ago
After a lengthy and contentious rulemaking process, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) published its final rule revising its tipped-employee regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) last week. The new rules take effect 60 days from their publication in the Federal Register, which will occur shortly.  Here is a summary of the new rules’ most critical provisions: Tip Credit Provisions. Several provisions of the new rules address the FLSA’s tip credit provision, which allows employers to pay employees a base wage that is less than the federal minimum so long as the sum of employe ..read more
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Washington Wine Industry Foundation Offers Scholarships for Students Pursuing Wine-Related Studies
Alcoholic Beverages Law Blog
by Stephanie Meier
3y ago
Stoel Rives is a proud annual sponsor of the Washington Wine Industry Foundation (and full disclosure: I am a board member) – a nonprofit, charitable organization that was founded almost twenty years ago with a goal to strengthen the future of the Washington wine industry through growth, education, and sustainability. Since 2002, the foundation has awarded 185 scholarships totaling $263,000 to Washington students who are pursuing certificates or degrees in viticulture, enology and other wine-related studies. This year, the foundation will offer more than $30,000 in scholarships. Applications a ..read more
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Update: State Water Board Issues Revised Notice for Board Meeting Regarding Winery General Order
Alcoholic Beverages Law Blog
by Melissa Foster
3y ago
In July, we blogged about the State Water Resources Control Board’s (“State Water Board’) release of proposed General Waste Discharge Requirements for Winery Process Water Treatment Systems (see: July 15, 2020 blog post on proposed General Order and July 20, 2020 blog post on noticed stakeholder meetings).  The State Water Board recently issued a revised notice that changes the dates of its Board meeting and when responses to public comments will be available. Pursuant to the State Water Board’s revised notice, the Board adoption hearing for the proposed General Order and draft Calif ..read more
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Force Majeure Probably Doesn’t Permit Smoke Taint Rejection
Alcoholic Beverages Law Blog
by Todd Friedman
3y ago
A force majeure clause in a contract permits the suspension, or in some cases, the termination, of performance by a party to the contract upon the occurrence of a force majeure event. Traditionally, a force majeure event is a matter outside of the control of the obligated party that makes it impossible or impracticable for that party to perform one or more of its obligations under the contract. For example, depending on the specific language of the force majeure provision, a labor strike might excuse a party from performing its obligation to manufacture and deliver goods purchased by a buyer ..read more
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