St. Patrick’s Day is this week, and with it comes many traditions. Wearing green, eating corned beef and cabbage and, in some people’s eyes most importantly, drinking (green) beer. While all of this may seem outside the scope of what Citation Technologies is all about, it is worth noting that CyberRegs does include regulations on beer and alcoholic beverages. From these regulations we can glean some interesting information.
We should first start with the definition of what beer is. According to Lousiana’s regulations, beer is “beer, porter, ale, or any malt beverage obtained by alcoholic fermentation of an infusion, or concoction of barley, or other grain, malt and hops in water.” As Homer Simpson would say, “Mmmm, beer.”
Washington, home of over 50 microbreweries, has its own Beer Commission. The commission is authorized to collect an assessment of 10 cents per barrel of beer for up to 10,000 barrels per location. That isn’t as fun as I imagined a Beer Commission to be (which was something along the lines of people sitting around “testing” beer for “quality control”). Washington also regulates how much of an alcoholic beverage a private individual can bring into the state for personal or household use. The answer there, if you want to avoid tax and markup, is 288 ounces of beer no more than once per calendar month (if it’s coming from inside the U.S.). It is important to note that if you come into a windfall of alcoholic beverages through an inheritance or estate settlement that you will be granted a one-time exemption from payment of taxes and markup. You know what that means…Party!
In Ohio statutes (Health, Safety and Morals division) it states that “No person shall have possession or control of, or be under the influence of, any intoxicating liquor, beer, or controlled substance, while on the premises of a fireworks plant.” I’m glad they laid that out there. And I always wonder, what brought about a law like this in the first place? Did something really bad happen at a fireworks plant?
In Indiana, retail establishment owners that sell alcoholic beverages by the drink for consumption on the premises must be the proprietor of a restaurant located on the premises and must be prepared to serve a food menu consisting of not less than: hot soups, hot sandwiches, coffee, milk, and soft drinks. You have to have something on hand to help soak up the alcohol. Soup isn’t the first thing to spring to mind, but I hope they have nachos on the menu!
We hope that wherever you are, and however you choose to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, that you have fun (and obey the laws and regulations)!
