Washington homebrewers can use our help

Support Your Local Brewery has issued an E-Action Alert for Washington, to help legalize homebrewing.

There’s the news:

The American Homebrewers Association has been working with the Washington Homebrewers Association (WAHA) to modify Washington’s regulations (RCW 66.28.140), which currently prohibit transportation or sharing of homemade beer and wine outside of the house of production, with exceptions only for competitions or exhibitions at which only “judges” can sample the products. The largest volume that may be transported is 1 gallon. Thus serving homebrew at homebrew club meetings or even at the house of a friend or family member is currently prohibited.

Senate Bill 5060 would allow for serving homemade beer and wine in amounts up to 20 gallons for meetings, events, etc., is currently scheduled for a public hearing in the Senate Labor, Commerce and Consumer Protection Committee on Tuesday, January 20th at 1:30 pm in Olympia (date is subject to change due to the Presidential Inauguration).

What is needed now is for people to contact the members of the Senate Labor, Commerce and Consumer Protection Committee to ask for them to support Washington’s brewing and winemaking communities by supporting Senate Bill 5060. Personal contacts with state legislators will go a long way in ensuring the success of this bill.

Senate Labor, Commerce and Consumer Protection Committee Members:

Senator Jeanne Kohl-Welles: (360) 786-7670
kohl-welles.jeanne@leg.wa.gov

Senator Karen Keiser: (360) 786-7664
keiser.karen@leg.wa.gov

Senator Janea Holmquist: (360) 786-7624
holmquist.janea@leg.wa.gov

Senator Rosa Franklin: (360) 786-7656
franklin.rosa@leg.wa.gov

Senator Jim Honeyford: (360) 786-7684
honeyford.jim@leg.wa.gov

Senator Curtis King: (360) 786-7626
king.curtis@leg.wa.gov

Senator Adam Kline: (360) 786-7688
kline.adam@leg.wa.gov

All of the information you need, updates and background material for this effort can be found at www.wahomebrewers.org/legal.

Thanks so much for your support of Washington’s homebrewers!