Arizona legislators trying to outdo Oregon with a 2087% increase in beer tax

February 20, 4:18 PMBeer ExaminerCharlie Papazian

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Beer distress in Arizona looming in Arizona

It wasn’t enough that Oregon legislators wanted to whack beer drinkers and their state’s small breweries with a 1900% tax increase.   Now Arizona is considering a “Liquor Luxury Tax” of $3.50 a gallon !  That’s up from the current rate of 16 cents a gallon.   

      Arizona H.B. 2524 has just been added to the House Ways & Means Committee agenda for an initial discussion Monday at 2:00 p.m.  

      There are about 25 small and independent craft breweries in Arizona who will be effected if this initiative gets any legs.  Who will pay the price?  As discussed in an earlier post, beer drinkers will be reaching deep into their pocketbooks to pay for this increase.   See: Proposed state beer tax increases hard to swallow - impacting jobs and beer drinkers   

      At $3.50 a gallon this equates to $7.85 per case “luxury” tax on beer.  The logic is unfathomable.  There won’t be any breweries around to pay the tax.  Loss of jobs are but one calculable causality.

      The proposed bill is framed as “Amending Title 48, Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding Chapter 39; relating to the Drug and Alcohol Treatment District.

      Beer yes.  “Luxury?”  “Drug and Alcohol Treatment?”

      There are over 80 million beer drinkers in America who responsibly enjoy beer.  It is not a luxury.  It is not a sin.  And beer drinkers vote.

      If this bothers you consider joining the beer activist network called Support Your Local Brewery and on call to help on local, state and national issues threatening your responsible enjoyment of beer.