NH Lawmaker Proposes Beer Tax Hike
CONCORD, NH (CBS) - The New Hampshire legislature is considering a bill that would raise the excise tax on beer by ten cents per gallon, a 33 percent increase.
The bill, currently in committee, is sponsored by Rep. Charles Weed (D – Keene).
It would increase the excise tax on any beer that's sold in New Hampshire to 40 cents per gallon.
If the bill is approved, New Hampshire would surpass Maine's 35 cents per gallon to become the highest beer tax in New England.
Massachusetts charges 11 cents per gallon.
Proponents say that the increase would bring in an estimated additional $4.3 million in state revenue each year.
In-state craft breweries like Smuttynose are reportedly furious about the proposal, saying it could cost them tens, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars.
New Hampshire's state beer tax is paid by:
• New Hampshire breweries/brewpubs on all sales made in New Hampshire.
• Out-of-state shippers that ship beer into New Hampshire from other states.
• New Hampshire wholesalers that import beer from a foreign country.
New Hampshire has also had the nation's highest alcohol sales rate per capita in four of the last five years.
