Monthly Archives: October 2014

The Better Block Portland Project is This Weekend

City of Portland

The Better Block Portland Project is this weekend!  Old Town

The Better Block Portland project runs this Friday October 3rd to Sunday October 5th.  Better Block PDX is an all-volunteer group that seeks to provide low-cost, temporary treatments to public right of ways to foster creative thinking about how best to use such spaces.

The project will transform several blocks of Third Avenue north and south of West Burnside in Old Town.  The temporary demonstration will include more places for people walk, sit and gather and also a protected southbound bike lane on Third Avenue from NW Davis St. to SW Ash St.  The project is supported by the Old Town Hospitality Group and the Old Town Chinatown Community Association.  To see a depiction of the project, click here.

This weekend, the group is hoping that the temporary re-design will highlight potential alternatives to the current street closures on the weekends.  With the number and variety of bars and restaurants in the area, owners of such businesses need to pay close attention to potential changes in how people can access and move through the area.

For more information on the event, click here.

The TTB Reduces the Regulatory Burden on Small Brewers

TTB

The TTB reduces the regulatory burden on small brewers.  TTB

The TTB published a final rule entitled “Small Brewers Bond Reduction and Requirements to File Tax Returns, Remit Tax Payments and Submit Reports Quarterly” on September 30, 2014.  Despite the unwieldy title of the rule, it is intended to simplify the regulatory requirements for small brewers and the TTB and does so.  “Small brewers” are defined by the TTB as those which produce less than 7,200 barrels.  This definition captures a huge number of breweries.

The TTB’s rule institutes a flat $1,000 penal sum for the brewer’s bond for these small brewers if their excise tax liability is expected to be less than $50,000 in a given calendar year and who were liable for no more than $50,000 in such taxes during the preceding calendar year.  The rule also allows these small brewers to move from monthly reports on operations and taxes to a quarterly report. The goal of this rule change is to reduce administrative costs for small brewers and create greater efficiency for TTB.

The new rules will become effective on January 1, 2015 ti give small brewers time to adjust to quarterly filing and reporting. For more information, the TTB press release can be found here and the final rule can be found here.

The TTB Expands the Allowable Revisions to Approved Alcohol Beverage Labels

TTB

The TTB expands the allowable revisions to approved alcohol beverage labels.  Wine Glass

On Monday, September 29 2014, the TTB issued Industry Circular 2014-2.  The Circular expands the list of allowable revisions to approved alcohol beverage labels effective on the date of the circular.  These changes will be added to the COLA form when it is next revised.

Industry members may make certain changes to previously approved alcohol beverage labels without applying for a new COLA.  There are currently 28 allowable revisions which may be found on the COLA form.  Furthermore, TTB has announced in various rulings and guidance documents that specific changes to labels may be made without resubmitting labels for approval.  See Industry Circular 2014-1.

Industry Circular 2014-2 permits the following changes to already-approved malt beverage, wine and distilled spirits labels without the need for a new certificate of label approval (COLA):

  1. The deletion or revision of sponsorship themed graphics, logos, artwork, and/or sponsorship information.
  2. The addition, deletion, or revision of awards, ratings, or recognition, such as “Rated a Top Value Wine of 2014 by xyz Association.”
  3. The deletion of organic claims provided that all organic claims are removed from the label.  A new COLA would be required to delete individual “organic” references while maintaining other “organic” references.
  4. The revision of an approved sulfite statement according to the formats prescribed by the Industry Circulars.  The options are: “Contains Sulfites,” “Contains (a) Sulfiting Agent(s),” “Contains [the name of specific sulfating agent],” “Contains Naturally Occurring and Added Sulfites” or “Contains Naturally Occurring Sulfites”.
  5. The addition, deletion, or revision of information regarding the number of bottles made, produced, distilled, or brewed in a batch.
  6. The addition of certain instruction statements about how best to consume or serve a product.  Only the following statements may be added: “Refrigerate After Opening”, “Do Not Store In Direct Sunlight”, “Best If Frozen For ___ to ___ Hours”, “Shake Well”, “Pour Over Ice”, “Best When Chilled”, “Best Served Chilled”, “Serve Chilled”, or “Serve at Room Temperature”.

Please see the circular for additional information.