Benefit Concert for HB 660

Poster for a concert that would benefit House Bill 660, the legislation that would allow Texas brewpubs to sell their products in stores and other bars, and put them on a level playing field with out-of-state brewpubs:

Correction: DR 11 Coming Out March 29

In a previous post, I said that Saint Arnold's Divine Reserve 11 would come out April 1. Actually, the press release said "around April 1." The actual release date is now set at March 29.

HB 602 and 660: Austin Chronicle Write-up

I just posted my write-up of yesterday's hearing on House Bills 602 and 660 at the Texas Legislature to The Austin Chronicle's Newsdesk blog. Read it here. It offers more detail and quotes than my post from yesterday.

(Pictured: Scott Metzger of San Antonio's Freetail Brewing and executive director of Texas Beer Freedom.)

HB 602 and 660: Texas Brewers Make Their Case

Texas brewers went to the state House Licensing and Administrative Procedures Committee today and made their case in favor of House Bills 602 and 660.

Now, normally I wouldn't wish sitting through a committee hearing of the Texas Legislature on my worst enemy, but seriously: If you're a lover of our state's craft beer and interested in these bills, you should watch the entire hearing on HB 660. (The HB 602 portion is less interesting because it had no opposition.) Click here and go to 26:35, when the 660 testimony begins.

Why would you want to do a thing like that? Because unlike most hearings, which are tedious and filled with technical mumbo-jumbo and good cures for insomnia, this was exactly the opposite: The proponents of 660 (including many beer distributors) were clear and concise in making their points, very effective. By contrast, the opposition — that is, the Wholesale Beer Distributors of Texas lobbying group, and no one else — were completely ineffective. I don't say that just because I support the bill, I actually mean that objectively. I really expected WBDT's attorney to get up and say something devastating, some bit of logic we hadn't thought of before, that would send 660 supporters scrambling for a counter-argument. It never happened.

The supporters' case:

• It's good for Texas businesses, and will end the state's current discrimination against its own brewers in favor of out-of-state ones. It was hilarious to watch El Paso Rep. Chente Quintanilla struggle to comprehend why non-Texan brewpubs can sell their beer in Texas stores, but Texas brewpubs can't. I'd say mark him down as a supporter.
  
• And if it's good for Texas business, then it's good for tax revenue, which the state badly needs right now.
• The bill would actually put more money in the hands of distributors, which is why the Beer Alliance of Texas, another distributor lobbying group, favors it.
• Brewpubs in other states have grown to be national success stories, such as California's Bear Republic. That will never happen if HB 660 does not pass.

The opposition's case seemed to be: The three-tier system should be preserved exactly as it is because … it just should. Seriously, that was really it. The WBDT attorney's main point was that the three-tier regulatory scheme divides manufacturers from distributors from retailers, and that brewpubs are retailers, and should not be allowed to have legal status as manufacturers. Bill author Mike Villarreal of San Antonio pointed out the obvious: “House Bill 660 will allow Texas brewpubs to be recognized for who they are. They manufacture beer.”

Now, go write to your state legislators (and the committee members) and tell them you want these bills passed.

Texas Brewers Lobbying Right Now at the Capitol

Press release from Texas Beer Freedom about its activities today at the Capitol:

Texas Beer Freedom supporters host advocacy day in support of HB 660

AUSTIN, TX - Texas brewpub owners and supporters visit the Texas State Capitol in support of HB 660, authored by Rep. Villarreal (D) and Rep. John Garza (R) of San Antonio, to discuss the 64 million dollar impact for the Texas state budget.

"We have a chance to grow small businesses and give consumers access to great Texas beers. I believe in government rules that protect consumers and encourage competition, but our current brewpub laws do the opposite. It's time for a change," said Rep. Villarreal.

House Bill 660 affords our state with an easy opportunity to inject up to $57 million annually in new tax revenues into our state budget. Thatʼs on top of the $7 million of annual tax revenues that our brewpub members currently inject into the state budget. Davis Tucker, NXNW brewpub owner said, “HB 660 wouldnʼt just enable Texas brewpubs to expand their local businesses and create 6,800 new jobs, it would lead to an eightfold improvement in the tax revenue we would provide to the state coffers.”

Texas brewpub supporters from across the state, Denton to San Antonio, will attend the Texas Beer Freedomʼs lobby day. Supporters will testify at the Licensing and Administrative Procedure Committee hearing for HB 660 and then meet with legislators.

“This is an issue for all small businesses facing unfair restrictions,” said Scott Metzger, Freetail Brewing owner. “The state government shouldnʼt limit our right to a free market when brewpubs contribute 7 million annually in tax revenue.”

“HB 660 will allow Texas brewpubs to distribute their beer via the three-tier system in the state they brew it in,” said Lou Dicello, Uncle Billyʼs co-owner. “This will allow our great locally brewed beer to be purchased in Texas and expand our tax contribution to estimates of 64 million annually.”

Texas Beer Freedom is a grassroots effort to support Texas craft beer industry, founded by local brewpub owners Scott Metzger, Lou Dicello, Davis Tucker, Joey Villarreal and Rick Engel. Supporting proposed legislation, TX 82(R) HB 660, is currently the primary focus.This legislative action would allow Texas brewpubs to sell their beer to wholesalers and distributors.

HB 602 and 660 Hearings Delayed

The public hearings at the Texas Capitol on House Bills 602 and 660 have been delayed until approximately 11:30am and 1pm today, respectively.

If you read my post about the hearings being this morning at 8:05am, and you took precious time out of your day to be there this morning, I apologize. As a long-time attendee of such hearings (my real-life job is political reporting), I should have known better than to suggest in that post that "you shouldn't have to wait too long to speak." Legislators are trying to juggle a million things at once, so things change rapidly.

You may be frustrated that you couldn't stick around and put in your two cents on the bill, and wondering why this happened:

• To deal with the conspiracy theorists among you: Yes, sometimes hearings get moved as a tactic to make it harder for people who want to testify for or against a bill. It's entirely possible this is what happened. However, since this bill is really pretty small change in the larger Lege world of budget deficits, school funding, health and human services, etc., I'm doubtful of this one.
• The reason I was given, and the more likely one: The committee chair, Rep. Mike "Tuffy" Hamilton, saw how many people wanted to testify, and knew they'd never get done before the House gavels into session at 10am. So he moved hearings until after the floor session is done so that testimony could go uninterrupted.

If you came to the Capitol this morning and left, I hope you can make it back. If you do, please bear in mind the lesson from this morning: Those announced hearing times are approximate. The actual resumption time will depend on how quickly the House gets its business done, and how long it takes the committee to deal with any other bills that come before it.

EDIT: I just thought of a couple more points to make:

• If you intend to come back for the committee hearing and want to be there for the whole thing, I recommend you eat a good meal first, because they likely won't break for lunch between 602 and 660. The committee members usually just disappear into the back room to get some lunch, so they don't have to break. No food for you, though. I recommend the Capitol Cafeteria, which is just right up the stairs from the committee hearing room.
• If you want to watch the hearing from home, you may do so by going here. You'll need RealPlayer software installed to view the streaming video. It's free. Look for the Committee on Licensing & Administrative Procedures. If you want to watch it later, go down to "Archived Broadcasts" and click on "Recent Committee Broadcasts."
  

Notes From the Draught House

Just got an e-mail from the Draught House with various bits of news. The first one was about the hearing at the Texas Capitol tomorrow morning for House Bills 602 and 660, but I've already told you about that. (Try to be there if you love craft beer.) Here's the rest:

-Some of you may have noticed, but we have partnered with Antonelli's Cheese for beer and cheese pairing on Mondays. Each week, I will choose a beer and John will match a cheese with it. The sample is FREE with beer purchase. Tonight we have Chaubier, a French cheese made with 1/2 goat milk and 1/2 cow milk. It is dense and buttery and pairs nicely with Victory Brewing Company's Headwaters Pale Ale, their new soft, floral and very drinkable ale.

-This Wednesday, 3/23, at 5:30pm, we will have Deschutes brewers Tim Alexander and Brian Faivre in the House. Come by and say hi, get the inside scoop on their beers and keep a glass when buying the Mirror Pond Pale Ale, Black Butte Porter or Inversion IPA.

-Firkin Friday's have been sporadic but this Friday, 3/25, we will tap Moylan's Hopsickle, for those of you who can't get enough hops. Coming up, we will have firkins of Great Divide Espresso Oak Aged Yeti and Southern Star (Creme Brulee) Buried Hatchet Stout.