It’s not the permanent extension they had been lobbying for, but good news came to brewers this week in the form of a one-year extension to the lower federal excise tax rates in effect since 2018.
Two years ago, Congress approved a package of tax cuts ostensibly aimed at smaller beverage producers, such as smaller, independent brewers. In effect it lightened the tax load for breweries of all sizes. The cuts were set to expire by the end of 2019 unless Congress acted to renew them.
“The lower FET rates have been a boon to small and independent brewers located in all 50 states and nearly every congressional district,” said Bob Pease, president and CEO of the Brewers Association, in a news release. “These savings empowered brewers to reinvest in their businesses and resulted in an annual tax savings of more than $80 million.”