I'm With the Florida Craft Brewers!

Big happenings in the Sunshine State

What the heck is going on with the Florida craft beer industry?

Tons, actually. Florida, which not that long ago was a bit of a craft beer no-man’s-land, has undergone a renaissance over the past 10 years. Breweries are popping up all over the state and big markets like Tampa have become beer towns, with craft beer scenes that rival some of the best in the country.

But this new found resurgence is not without its challenges, most of which are coming from big beer and the state government.

There has been a struggle between Florida brewers and the state for a while now, mostly over growlers. The laws on the books in Florida make 64oz growlers illegal, which as we all know, is the standard size of a growler. There are ways around this, of course, but needless to say, brewers in Florida have been asking their government to amend the growler restrictions, and understandably so.

This argument over growlers has opened up a Pandora’s Box of sorts and now, as of March 22nd, a total of 11 beverage industry bills are up for consideration in the Florida Legislature, according to BrewersLaw.com. All but a handful of those bills are focused on dramatically reshaping the operation of Florida’s breweries. But three, in particular, are causing a stir.

Not an actual representation of debating Legislators

House Bill 387 has been unanimously approved by the Florida House Regulatory Affairs Committee, and authorizes beer tastings at licensed premises. It amazes me that they weren’t authorized before, but hey – good news story.

House Bill 1329, on the other hand, is under attack – and that is a very good thing. Dubbed the “Big Beer Bill,” HB 1329 limits the sale of beer from the brewer to the end consumer, requires brewers to include intent to supply beer to distributors in their business plan, prohibits tap rooms from selling beers brewed wholly or partially by another brewery, and defines a growler as 32 or 64 ounces. Not surprisingly, this bill has the support of a group of Anheuser-Busch distributors in Florida, and rumor has it that they may have been involved in the bill’s inception.

The good news is the House Business and Professional Regulation Subcommittee filed an unfavorable Staff Analysis on March 21st, stating that the “restrictions and limitations [contained in HB 1329] should reduce the potential revenue of [Florida craft breweries].” Also on March 21st, two “strike all” amendments were filed in the House to entirely re-write the text of HB 1329.

Florida needs growlers, just like growlers need Florida

Meanwhile, in the Senate, there is Senate Bill 7120, which was introduced on March 21st. It essentially matches the growler-focused portions of HB 1329, limiting a brewery’s off premises consumption to filling 32 and 64 ounce growlers with only the brewery’s own beer. The Florida Brewers Guild has written the below letter regarding the impact of SB 7120, which was forwarded on from Charlie Papazian, the President of the Brewers Association:

The Florida Brewers Guild needs your help to oppose legislation that is severely detrimental to Florida’s breweries. It is imperative that you contact the Senate President and your local State Senator as soon as possible to tell them to VOTE NO on Proposed Senate Bill 7120.

Although the Proposed Senate Bill 7120 will legalize 64 ounce growlers, it places burdensome and punitive restrictions on breweries and their tasting rooms that are not in place under current law and serve no other purpose than to strongly curtail the rapid growth of small business breweries in Florida.

The bills will make it illegal for breweries to sell a 128 ounce growler. It will make it illegal for breweries to fill growlers of their own beer if it was brewed at another location. It will make it illegal for specialty beer shops that are subject to inspection by the Health Department to sell growlers but protects liquor stores that are not required to be inspected by the Health Department. The bill also stipulates that if the new growler restrictions are not strictly adhered to, then you are committing a first degree misdemeanor and could have your brewery license revoked.

Additionally, the bill makes it illegal for breweries to sell beer in bottles and cans for off-premise consumption, including collaboration beers, and makes it illegal for a brewery to make cider or mead.

Tap rooms are magical places

Even more alarming, it kills any potential for creativity and future growth in the industry, as it contains an oppressive limitation which states, “anything not specifically authorized . . . is prohibited unless otherwise authorized under the Beverage Law.”

The bill does offer an advantage for beer distributors, granting them an exemption from the current law that requires any beer picked up by a distributor from a brewery be brought back to their licensed and bonded warehouse to ensure compliance with state and federal taxation.

Simply put, these anti-consumer, anti-business restrictions will hurt Florida breweries and put an end to the growth of craft beer along with many of the jobs created by the brewing industry in Florida.

It is imperative that you contact the Senate President and your local State Senator to tell them to VOTE NO on this bill. Tell them how harmful these restrictions will be to your local craft brewery. Please be courteous and respectful, but let them know that you care about Florida’s craft breweries and their positive economic impact and job growth they bring to your local community.

Thank you for supporting craft beer in Florida!

I'm tired of keeping calm!

If you want more information about these legislative debates, BrewersLaw.com has a good summary and links to more sources. I highly recommend them as a starting point for your research.

It will be interesting to see how this all shakes out. Perhaps the favorable decisions that were made in the House will also be made in the Senate. Or, perhaps the big beer and distributors lobbies will successfully destroy the brewing industry in the state of Florida forever. I’m rooting for the former, obviously, and I encourage all of you to spread the word about this nonsense and raise awareness about it. Even if you don’t live in Florida, as I do not, this effects craft beer lovers everywhere. If these types of shenanigans are successful in the sunshine state, they could try them in your neck of the woods too. And if you do live in Florida, please contact your representatives and senators to petition them to support delicious craft beer in your state.

Here’s to craft-brewed happiness… Cheers!