Michigan Breweries Benefit from Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act

LANSING, Mich— A 2-year version of the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act (CBMTRA), which lowers the federal excise tax for breweries, was passed on Wednesday, December 20, 2017  by the 115^th U.S. Congress. This savings will allow Michigan’s nearly 300 small brewers, including many manufacturers and entrepreneurs, to reinvest in their businesses, expand their operations and hire more workers.

Under the bill, the federal excise tax will be reduced to $3.50/barrel (from $7/barrel) on the first 60,000 barrels for domestic brewers producing less than 2 million barrels annually, and reduced to $16/barrel (from $18/barrel) on the first 6 million barrels for all other brewers and all beer importers. The bill would maintain the current $18/barrel rate for barrelage over 6 million. The legislation is currently written as a 2-year provision. The provisions of this bill are effective January 1, 2018.

The effort to bring meaningful federal excise tax relief to small brewers has been a

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