The Federal Excise Tax on Beverage Alcoholstophospitalitytaxes.com/pdf/FETbrochure.pdf · About the...
2
About the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States The Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS) is a na- tional trade association representing producers and marketers of dis- tilled spirits sold in the United States. Over the years, the Council has served as the distillers voice on policy and legislative issues at the federal, state, and international levels. Our member companies take every step to encourage adults who chose to drink to enjoy beverage alcohol products responsibly. This commitment to quality and social responsibility has been, and will continue to be, the cornerstone of the distilled spirits industry. Industry Highlights ! The distilled spirits industry generates $95 billion in U.S. eco- nomic activity annually. ! Over 1.3 million people are employed in the United States through the manufacture, distribution and sale of distilled spir- its. ! Jobs within the distilled spirits industry account for more than $28 billion in U.S. wages. DISCUS Member Companies ! Bacardi USA, Inc ! Barton Incorporated ! Beam Global Spirits & Wine, Inc ! Brown-Forman Corporation ! Diageo ! Imperial Brands, Inc ! Luxco, Inc ! Moºt Hennessy USA ! Patrn Spirits Company ! Pernod Ricard USA ! RØmy Cointreau USA, Inc ! Sidney Frank Importing Co., Inc ! Suntory International Corp. Distilled Spirits Council of the United States 1250 Eye Street NW Suite 400 Washington, DC 2005 202.628.3544 www.discus.org The Federal Excise Tax on Beverage Alcohol Increasing the Burden on Consumers and the Hospitality Industry DISTILLED SPIRITS COUNCIL OF THE UNITED STATES
Transcript of The Federal Excise Tax on Beverage Alcoholstophospitalitytaxes.com/pdf/FETbrochure.pdf · About the...
Abo
ut t
he D
istil
led
Spir
its C
ounc
il of
the
U
nite
d St
ates
Th
e D
istil
led
Spi
rits
Cou
ncil
of th
e U
nite
d S
tate
s (D
ISC
US
) is
a na
-tio
nal t
rade
ass
ocia
tion
repr
esen
ting
prod
ucer
s an
d m
arke
ters
of d
is-
tille
d sp
irits
sol
d in
the
Uni
ted
Stat
es. O
ver t
he y
ears
, the
Cou
ncil
has
serv
ed a
s th
e di
stille
rs� v
oice
on
polic
y an
d le
gisl
ativ
e is
sues
at t
he
fede
ral,
stat
e, a
nd in
tern
atio
nal l
evel
s.
Our
mem
ber c
ompa
nies
take
eve
ry s
tep
to e
ncou
rage
adu
lts w
ho
chos
e to
drin
k to
enj
oy b
ever
age
alco
hol p
rodu
cts
resp
onsi
bly.
Thi
s co
mm
itmen
t to
qual
ity a
nd s
ocia
l res
pons
ibili
ty h
as b
een,
and
will
co
ntin
ue to
be,
the
corn
erst
one
of th
e di
stille
d sp
irits
indu
stry
. In
dust
ry H
ighl
ight
s !
The
dist
illed
spi
rits
indu
stry
gen
erat
es $
95 b
illio
n in
U.S
. eco
-no
mic
act
ivity
ann
ually
. !
Ove
r 1.3
milli
on p
eopl
e ar
e em
ploy
ed in
the
Uni
ted
Stat
es
thro
ugh
the
man
ufac
ture
, dis
tribu
tion
and
sale
of d
istil
led
spir-
its.
!
Jobs
with
in th
e di
still
ed s
pirit
s in
dust
ry a
ccou
nt fo
r mor
e th
an
$28
billio
n in
U.S
. wag
es.
DIS
CU
S M
embe
r C
ompa
nies
!
Bac
ardi
USA
, Inc
!
Bar
ton
Inco
rpor
ated
!
Bea
m G
loba
l Spi
rits
& W
ine,
Inc
!
Bro
wn-
Form
an C
orpo
ratio
n !
Dia
geo
!
Impe
rial B
rand
s, In
c !
Luxc
o, In
c !
Moë
t Hen
ness
y U
SA
!
Pat
rón
Spi
rits
Com
pany
!
Per
nod
Ric
ard
US
A
!
Rém
y C
oint
reau
US
A, I
nc
!
Sid
ney
Fran
k Im
porti
ng C
o., I
nc
!
Sun
tory
Inte
rnat
iona
l Cor
p.
Di
stille
d Sp
irits
Cou
ncil
of th
e Un
ited
Stat
es
1250
Eye
Stre
et N
W
Suite
400
W
ashi
ngto
n, D
C 2
005
202.
628.
3544
ww
w.di
scus
.org
The
Fede
ral E
xcis
e Ta
x on
Bev
erag
e A
lcoh
ol
Incr
easi
ng th
e B
urde
n on
Con
sum
ers
and
the
Hos
pita
lity
Indu
stry
DIS
TILL
ED S
PIR
ITS
CO
UN
CIL
OF
TH
E U
NIT
ED
ST
AT
ES
Fede
ral E
xcis
e Ta
x on
Bev
erag
e A
lcoh
ol
Incr
easi
ng t
he B
urde
n on
Con
sum
ers
and
the
Hos
pita
lity
Indu
stry
Hos
pita
lity
Taxe
s pe
naliz
e re
spon
sibl
e, m
iddl
e in
com
e co
nsum
ers
!
The
Fede
ral E
xcis
e Ta
x (F
ET)
on
beve
rage
alc
ohol
is o
ne o
f th
e m
ost
regr
essi
ve t
axes
impo
sed
on a
ny A
mer
ican
con
sum
er p
rodu
ct.
!
Bev
erag
e al
coho
l ta
xes
disp
ropo
rtion
atel
y im
-pa
ct
low
er
and
mid
dle
inco
me
cons
umer
s.
Hou
seho
lds
with
les
s th
an $
50,0
00 i
n an
nual
in
com
e co
nsum
e ha
lf of
all
beve
rage
alc
ohol
in
the
Uni
ted
Sta
tes.
Inc
reas
ing
thes
e ta
xes
will
only
furth
er p
enal
ize
low
and
mod
erat
e in
com
e co
nsum
ers.
!
Six
ty-s
ix p
erce
nt o
f ad
ults
in
fam
ilies
with
an-
nual
inc
omes
bet
wee
n $3
0,00
0 an
d $5
0,00
0 en
joy
beve
rage
alc
ohol
. Fo
rty-n
ine
perc
ent o
f ho
useh
olds
w
ith
annu
al
inco
mes
un
der
$30,
000
cons
ume
thes
e pr
oduc
ts.
!
It is
som
etim
es b
elie
ved
that
mid
dle
and
low
er
inco
me
cons
umer
s ar
e pr
imar
ily b
eer
drin
kers
. H
owev
er, t
his
notio
n is
foun
ded
on e
cono
mic
ste
reot
ypin
g, r
athe
r th
an a
ctua
l res
earc
h. A
s th
e ch
art
abov
e sh
ows,
rou
ghly
the
sam
e po
rtion
of
spiri
ts,
win
e an
d be
er c
onsu
mer
s ar
e fo
und
in e
ach
in-
com
e gr
oup.
0.00
%
10.0
0%
20.0
0%
30.0
0%
40.0
0%
Win
eSp
irits
Beer
Prop
ortio
n of
win
e, sp
irits
and
beer
cons
umer
s in
hous
e-ho
lds e
arni
ng le
ss th
an $5
0,000
per
year
Bev
erag
e al
coho
l is
amon
g th
e hi
ghes
t tax
ed c
onsu
mer
goo
ds
!
Fede
ral,
stat
e an
d lo
cal
gove
rnm
ents
im
pose
sig
nifi-
cant
tax
es o
n al
coho
l pro
duct
s. T
he a
mou
nt o
f ta
xes
colle
cted
at a
ll le
vels
of g
over
nmen
t is
mor
e th
an d
ou-
ble
the
amou
nt o
f co
mbi
ned
prof
it ea
rned
by
com
pa-
nies
who
reta
il, d
istri
bute
and
pro
duce
thes
e pr
oduc
ts.
!
Dire
ct t
axes
on
beve
rage
alc
ohol
impo
sed
by fe
dera
l, st
ate
and
loca
l gov
ernm
ents
acc
ount
for o
ver o
ne-th
ird
the
shel
f pr
ice
of
dist
illed
sp
irits
, w
ine
and
beer
.
Thes
e ar
e pr
imar
ily e
xcis
e an
d sa
les
taxe
s.
!
Whe
n in
dire
ct ta
xes
and
fees
ass
ocia
ted
with
the
pro-
duct
ion
and
sale
of b
ever
age
alco
hol a
re in
clud
ed, t
he
tota
l tax
bur
den
acco
unts
for
mor
e th
an h
alf
the
pric
e th
at c
onsu
mer
s pa
y fo
r mos
t bra
nds.
$0.0
0
$10.
00
$20.
00
Spiri
ts
Beer
Win
e
$13.
50$6
.18
$4.8
6
Curre
nt FE
T rate
s pe
r pro
of g
allon
59%
Fede
ral E
xcis
e Ta
x on
Bev
erag
e A
lcoh
ol
Incr
easi
ng t
he B
urde
n on
Con
sum
ers
and
the
Hos
pita
lity
Indu
stry
Hos
pita
lity
jobs
and
bus
ines
ses
depe
nd o
n be
vera
ge a
lcoh
ol s
ales
!
The
natio
n�s
hosp
italit
y in
dust
ry �
res
taur
ants
, ba
rs,
hote
ls,
reta
il st
ores
and
the
like
� d
eriv
es a
sub
-st
antia
l por
tion
of it
s jo
bs a
nd s
ales
from
bev
erag
e al
coho
l. R
esta
uran
ts th
at s
ell d
istil
led
spiri
ts, w
ine
and
/ or b
eer,
for e
xam
ple,
ear
n on
ave
rage
mor
e th
an 2
5% o
f the
ir in
com
e fro
m a
lcoh
ol s
ales
.
!
The
beer
, w
ine
and
dist
illed
spi
rits
sect
ors
cont
ribut
e a
com
bine
d $3
50 b
illio
n to
the
U.S
eco
nom
y.
Man
ufac
ture
rs,
dist
ribut
ors
and
reta
ilers
dire
ctly
and
ind
irect
ly e
mpl
oy o
ver
3.7
milli
on h
ardw
orki
ng
Amer
ican
s.
Hig
h al
coho
l tax
es p
enal
ize
resp
onsi
ble
drin
kers
, not
abu
sers
!
Rai
sing
taxe
s on
bev
erag
e al
coho
l onl
y se
rves
to p
enal
ize
resp
onsi
ble
beve
rage
alc
ohol
con
sum
ers
and
does
not
det
er a
buse
rs f
or w
hom
taxe
s ar
e of
littl
e co
ncer
n.
The
Nat
iona
l Ins
titut
e on
Alc
ohol
A
buse
and
Alc
ohol
ism
, the
gov
ernm
ent�s
lead
age
ncy
on a
lcoh
ol is
sues
, rep
orte
d in
its
Janu
ary
2001
is
sue
of A
lcoh
ol A
lert
that
res
earc
h su
gges
ts t
he h
eavi
est-d
rinki
ng 5
per
cent
of
drin
kers
do
not
re-
duce
the
ir co
nsum
ptio
n si
gnifi
cant
ly i
n re
spon
se t
o pr
ice
incr
ease
s, u
nlik
e dr
inke
rs w
ho c
onsu
me
alco
hol a
t mor
e m
oder
ate
leve
ls.
Soft
econ
omy
is p
uttin
g se
vere
str
ain
on H
ospi
talit
y In
dust
ry
!
The
hosp
italit
y in
dust
ry is
the
seco
nd la
rges
t em
-pl
oyer
in th
e U
nite
d S
tate
s, p
rovi
ding
jobs
to o
ver
13 m
illion
wor
kers
. It
crea
tes
uniq
ue o
ppor
tuni
ties
for f
irst-t
ime
job
seek
ers,
min
ority
man
ager
s an
d sm
all b
usin
ess
entre
pren
eurs
. !
For o
ver a
yea
r, th
e in
dust
ry a
nd it
s em
ploy
ees
have
bee
n un
der
seve
re s
train
from
the
econ
omic
dow
n-tu
rn.
Sinc
e Fe
brua
ry 2
008,
hos
pita
lity
empl
oym
ent
has
drop
ped
by 4
21,0
00 jo
bs a
nd t
he r
ate
of
unem
ploy
men
t in
the
indu
stry
now
sta
nds
at 1
1.4
perc
ent a
ccor
ding
to th
e B
urea
u of
Lab
or S
tatis
-tic
s.
!
Rai
sing
taxe
s on
suc
h an
impo
rtant
and
ha
rd h
it ec
onom
ic s
ecto
r will
add
to th
e na
tion�
s un
empl
oym
ent r
olls
but
will
not
add
sig
nific
ant
tax
reve
nue.
Bev
erag
e al
coho
l tax
es b
y an
y na
me
or fo
r any
pur
pose
are
unm
ista
kabl
y �H
ospi
talit
y Ta
xes.
�
Exce
ssiv
e be
vera
ge a
lcoh
ol ta
xes
depr
ess
reve
nues
and
em
ploy
men
t !
Whe
n fe
dera
l ex
cise
tax
es o
n sp
ir-its
, be
er a
nd w
ine
wer
e la
st r
aise
d in
199
1, t
hey
gene
rate
d $2
.4 b
illio
n le
ss t
han
Con
gres
s fo
reca
st o
ver
the
succ
eedi
ng 5
-yea
r per
iod.
!
The
tax
rate
on
dist
illed
spi
rits
ex-
ceed
ed
the
poin
t of
�d
imin
ishi
ng
retu
rn�
afte
r th
e 19
91
incr
ease
. S
pirit
s sa
les
and
reve
nues
act
ually
fe
ll, a
nd it
took
10
year
s be
fore
they
re
gain
ed th
eir p
re-1
991
leve
ls.
!
Som
e ha
ve p
ropo
sed
that
the
bev
-er
age
alco
hol t
ax b
urde
n be
fur
ther
in
crea
sed
by a
djus
ting
Fede
ral
Ex-
cise
Tax
es fo
r inf
latio
n si
nce
1991
. If t
he d
isas
trous
pol
icie
s of
the
past
are
repe
ated
, eco
nom
ic m
od-
els
proj
ect a
loss
of 1
60,0
00 h
ospi
talit
y in
dust
ry jo
bs.
Spirits sales (millions of gallons)
1991
FET
Incr
ease
on
Spiri
ts R
educ
ed T
ax R
even
ues
and
Dim
inis
hed
Sale
s
Tax Revenues (millions of dollars)
