Liquor Code

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Thank you to Chad Umble at LNP for another informative article regarding Pennsylvania liquor laws.  This one is concerning legislation pending in the PA House of Representatives that would impact the way that grocery stores and convenience stores could operate.

More specifically, the article highlights a bill currently being considered in the House’s Liquor Control Committee that would create a “customer convenience permit” which would enable those holding the permit to deny patrons the ability to consume alcohol on their premises, and also allow them more flexibility in terms of where they have to physically locate the beer and wine within their store.  It also proposes to remove some of the restrictions on how many ounces of alcohol can be purchased in any given transaction. As you might imagine, despite this being called a “customer convenience permit”, it is really a permit that was crafted solely by and for the grocery stores and convenience stores. As correctly pointed out in the article, Walmart is a major proponent of this bill and likely provided much, if not all, of the input on the bill as it was drafted.
Continue Reading More about the Proposal for New Liquor Permits

The Pennsylvania Department of Revenue, somewhat quietly, has issued a sales tax bulletin recently setting forth some guidance which lays the groundwork for the Department of Revenue to begin imposing a 6% sales tax on products served by Pennsylvania breweries in their taproom to customers. This would include draft beers that are sold onsite and six packs and growlers which are sold for off premises consumption.

There didn’t appear to be a lot of buzz when this guidance was passed by the Department of Revenue. Central Penn Business Journal published an article highlighting the double hit that many breweries are currently taking given the tariffs  that have been imposed by the Trump Administration on steel. What is of particular concern is the seemingly unfair and inconsistent manner in which the sales tax would be imposed on the sales made by breweries when compared to a restaurant.
Continue Reading Sales Tax Coming on Breweries

Have you picked up a six-pack or refilled your growler lately?  As of this week you have a new option in Pennsylvania.  Act 166 was passed in the fall and went into effect on Tuesday, January 17, 2017.  It allows beer distributors to offer six-packs, individual bottles and cans, and even growlers for sale.

This legislation came in large part because the beer distributors were left out of much of the liquor reform that occurred earlier this summer with the passage of Act 39.  In that bill, which has generated much attention, restaurant licensees were given the ability to sell wine to-go, provided they obtain the appropriate permit, and breweries, distilleries, and wineries in PA were given the ability to sell other Pennsylvania-produced products, even if they had not manufactured it themselves.  Those were some rather sweeping changes to the Liquor Code that benefitted those industries but beer distributors were left out.

Opportunities for beer distributors came in Act 166, which they claim will better allow them to compete with the various bottle shops, grocery stores, and other establishments which sell smaller quantities of beer.  It was not that long ago that the PLCB changed its position and allowed beer distributors to sell 12-packs, but this legislation adds even more options for distributors and consumers. 
Continue Reading More Liquor Code Changes – Six-Packs, Individual Bottles & Cans, Growlers now Available at PA Beer Distributors