Friday, August 14, 2020 www.nabca.org

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS

• MI: City proposes development of social district • Is Restaurant Dining on Sidewalks and Streets Here to Stay? (excerpt) • New online liquor and gaming tool reveals Tamworth alcohol-fuelled behaviour improving in

2020 • Wine industry dismayed at U.S. decision to continue 25% tariffs • TTB Appoints Mary Ryan New Administrator

NABCA News

Visit NABCA’s COVID-19 Resource page for updates regarding policy changes that effect on- and off-premise retail operations.

TTB NEWS

You can now find all of TTB’s COVID-19-related news and guidance in a single location.

ADDITIONAL LINKS

Visit NABCA’s website for information on:

• Control State Agency Information • Doing Business in Control States • NABCA News

CONTROL STATE NEWS

IA: Iowa cracking down on bars, restaurants ignoring 6-foot rule Fines can result if social distancing not enforced

The Gazette Gazette Des Moines Bureau August 13, 2020

ANKENY — State regulators are cracking down on bars and restaurants failing to comply with the social distancing required in Gov. Kim Reynolds’ emergency

public health disaster proclamation aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus in Iowa.

Officials with the state Alcoholic Beverages Division on Thursday reported they had conducted 333 inspections and received 46 complaints regarding social distancing and advanced hygiene practices at state-licensed establishments.

The agency reported 49 preliminary investigations, with four cases opened as part of stepped-up enforcement.

The enforcement activities took place between July 30 and Aug. 11 and, in some cases, were coordinated with local law enforcement agencies, according to the update.

Last month, the two agencies that oversee Iowa bars, restaurants and other food establishments — the Alcoholic Beverages Division and state Department of Inspections and Appeals — announced they were taking additional steps to ensure that businesses follow public health guidelines set forth by the proclamation.

The proclamation requires establishments to create at least 6 feet of physical distance between each group or individual dining or drinking. It requires that all patrons have a seat at a table or bar and that an establishment keep patrons from congregating closer than 6 feet.

For first offenses, businesses with an alcohol license will be fined $1,000 by the state Alcoholic Beverages Division, and restaurants will be issued a warning by the state Department of Inspections and Appeals.

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A second offense will result in a seven-day suspension of a business’ alcohol or food license; a third offense will result in the business losing that license.

As of Thursday, more than 51,167 Iowans have contracted the coronavirus, and 954 Iowans have died of COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, since the pandemic first arrived in Iowa in mid-March.

MI: City proposes development of social district

Sturgis Journal By Elena Meadows Journal Correspondent August 13, 2020

Sturgis City Commission on Wednesday held the first review of an ordinance amendment allowing consumption of alcoholic beverages in parks and public property as part of a commons area.

Public act 124 of 2020, signed into law on July 1, authorizes the creation of “Social Districts” and “Commons Areas” by the governing body of a local governmental unit.

Under the law, businesses with qualified liquor licenses whose licensed premises are contiguous to a commons area within a social district and have been issued a social district permit by Michigan Liquor Control may sell alcoholic liquor (beer, wine, mixed spirit drink, spirits or mixed drinks) on their licensed premises to customers who may then consume it within a commons area of a social district.

A proposed city of Sturgis downtown social district plan establishes an area in downtown Sturgis, running east and west from the railroad tracks west of Jefferson Street to North Fourth Street. The district has a variable northern boundary, the farthest point running just north of Sturges-Young Center for the Arts with a southern boundary generally a half-block south of U.S. 12/Chicago Road.

Several sub-areas have been defined that would expand the social district during limited times.

The district would include Wings Etc. and Sturges-Young Center for the Arts. Vice mayor Jon Good suggested the boundaries be extended to include American Legion.

People using the commons area would be allowed to take a beverage into other businesses downtown, but not into another location with a liquor license or other businesses that sell food but do not have a liquor license (other restaurants). The proposal includes a provision in hiwhc the city would provide businesses that wish to allow alcohol with a window cling to identify themselves.

Hours of operation for the commons area are proposed to be from the opening of business for the license holders until 11 p.m., with sale of beverages for use in the commons area ending at 10 p.m.

A resolution formally designating the social district and commons area will be provided at the next city commission meeting.

Assistant city manager Andrew Kuk said this is envisioned to help with COVID-19, providing extra space for businesses who are limited in how many customers they can allow inside.

If there is a special event with a liquor license (such as the “Sturgis Fest” beer tent) anywhere in the social district, the commons area closes down, if there is no special liquor license the district would operate as normal. This reduces the burden on the city, Downtown Development Authority and Sturgis Area Chamber of Commerce for arranging staffing of beer tents for events — one of the existing establishments could serve.

LICENSE STATE NEWS

MA: ‘I Think It’s About Communication At This Point’ Bars, Restaurants Struggle With State Guidelines

CBS Boston By Beth Germano August 13, 2020

BOSTON (CBS) – At least 100 beer garden and restaurant owners met for a Zoom conversation with the Boston Licensing Board amid rising complaints about non-compliance with social distancing guidelines.

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“We’re here to work with you and help you in every way we can,” said Lesley Delaney Hawkins, general counsel for the board.

“It’s been one thing after another and trying to play catch up,” said Matt Malloy, CEO of Dorchester Brewing Company who appealed to the board for better communication to navigate state regulations, especially in light of Governor Baker’s recent order that alcohol can only be served with food made on the premises.

It is at his restaurant along with the signature brewing operation. “It required us going to the city, engaging a lawyer to make sure we’re in compliance. Our lawyer is great but not cheap,” said Malloy.

Owners say there are so many nuances in the regulations they have to keep up on an almost daily basis, but credit the city for giving them support.

“This reopening is done to help restaurants get back on foot and try to do this with public health the number one priority,” said Kathleen Joyce, chairwoman of the Boston Licensing Board.

At Dorchester Brewing Company they are strict about protocols, but still, today received a warning after a complaint that alcohol was served without food late at night, which Matt Malloy calls a misunderstanding. He’s looking for better navigation through the regulations.

“I wish there was a way to have a liaison, so we’re all working together. I think it’s about communication at this point,” said Malloy. Which is why the licensing board offered the zoom meeting as members, along with restaurants, try to interpret state compliance and keep the businesses viable.

CA: Is Restaurant Dining on Sidewalks and Streets Here to Stay? (excerpt) Both candidates for the next mayor of San Diego indicate yes

San Diego Magazine By Troy Johnson August 13, 2020

“Every time we have reclaimed space from parking and given it back to people it’s been a home run,” says San Diego mayoral candidate Todd Gloria.

“We are fortunate to be in San Diego where we can do this many months of the year, and I fully support this going forward in many neighborhoods,” says San Diego mayoral candidate Barbara Bry.

Both candidates are talking about restaurants spilling onto the sidewalks and streets and parking lots in an effort to survive. They are talking about the potentially permanent changes to the way the city allows restaurants to operate, and the face of the city itself.

It’s not news that the pandemic has decimated our restaurant culture. It needs so much help, from city, county, state, country, and God at this point. Two weeks ago, on behalf of San Diego’s restaurants, I asked their most burning questions to both candidates—one of whom will become San Diego’s new mayor after the runoff election on November 3. Over the next week I’ll relay a couple of the major takeaways.

One of the restaurants’ biggest questions was: Because indoor dining was forced to close, the city, county, and state have loosened restrictions to help restaurants survive. The city streamlined the process for them to set up “parklets” on sidewalks, streets, and parking lots to seat more people safely outside. The state allowed them to sell alcohol to go. Given that the economic ramifications of the coronavirus will last for years after indoor dining is allowed again, what is the possibility that they’ll be able to make these outdoor areas permanent? And sell alcohol to go for a long time to come?

The answer from both mayoral candidates seems to be: Yes, many of the changes made are here to stay. To be clear, this is me reading between the lines. Mayors aren’t the only ones who make decisions, and they’d have to convince a host of others. (For instance, alcohol to go is governed by Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC), which is a state agency.) I’ve included their exact answers below, so you can read between your own lines.

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But if true, this is at least a small ray of hope for restaurateurs who’ve been able to take advantage of the new, looser laws. (Unfortunately, some restaurants don’t have alcohol to sell to go, and some don’t have outdoor spaces to expand into.)

It’s also good news for the future of the city, because the most esteemed inhabitant of San Diego—no disrespect to the Roberto’s family—has always been your car. The city’s first freeway opened in 1948, and our infrastructure expanded and evolved right alongside peak car culture of the 1950s. The postwar manufacturing sector stopped cranking out bombs and switched to sedans. Eisenhower’s interstate system kicked into action in 1956, making the car the spirit animal of freedom itself. Hot rod culture gave cars flames and loud noises and testosterone. Drive-through and drive-in restaurants dominated. Nothing cooler than a burger delivered through your window by an energetic gum-smacker on roller skates. The decade started with 25 million cars on American roads; it ended with about 70 million.

Point is, with plenty of land and laughable public transportation, San Diego grew out instead of up. We became one massive suburb (a study in 2015 considered only 49 percent of the city “urban”). To get from one place to the next—like, say, to partake of thrilling restaurants or bars in the city’s heart—you needed wide roads and a parking spot.

City planners have been trying to undo this for decades—taking back parking spots and even roads, and giving them to people on foot, on bike, in stroller. City officials tried to close Fifth Avenue to traffic years ago, and in response to pushback, they compromised by prohibiting parking, which helped. San Diego got its first “parklet”—a zone that allows restaurants to replace sidewalk space and even a couple parking spots with alfresco dining structures—in 2013 at Caffè Calabria in North Park. But the movement never really took off. The permitting and other costs were too prohibitive. In 2019, the city tried to encourage more of these parklets, setting up a fund to help cover costs.

But it took a pandemic to start giving this city back to the pedestrians. Businesses and cultural activities have had to spill into the streets, and it doesn’t sound like they’ll need to give them up.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Philippines: ABAPI starts responsible drinking campaign

Manila Standard August 13, 2020

As several Metro Manila cities have re-imposed liquor bans after the national government placed the region under modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ), a nonprofit association of alcoholic drink makers has called for an enhanced campaign on responsible drinking.

The Alcoholic Beverages Alliance of the Philippines, Inc. (ABAPI), a group led by Diageo, Pernod Ricard, and Moët Hennessy, also urged adult alcohol drinkers to observe safe practices in alcohol purchase and consumption.

The group said they are committed in creating and shaping a better drinking environment in the country.

“ABAPI stands with the government in the fight against the spread of COVID-19,” Alliance President Kavita Hans said.

“We prioritize public health and safety and we do so by campaigning about responsible drinking attitudes so that re-imposition of liquor bans may be avoided, and consumers may continue to enjoy alcoholic beverages responsibly and moderately.”

ABAPI believes that drinking alcohol, when purchased and consumed responsibly and moderately by those who are above legal drinking age and who choose to drink, can play a positive role in promoting meaningful social connections, more so in these extraordinary times.

These responsible drinking behaviors include always drinking in moderation, staying hydrated, tracking alcohol intake, and never drinking and driving.

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ABAPI also encourages consumers to follow government-issued guidelines on alcohol purchase and consumption, such as practicing proper physical distancing, following allowed limits on gatherings and curfews.

The group said the vast majority of the population consume alcohol responsibly and, in many countries, per capita consumption and harmful drinking trends are declining.

As such, responsible consumption of alcohol consistent with government guidelines can be part of a balanced lifestyle for adults who choose to drink, it said.

ABAPI also advises the public to strictly purchase legitimate products from legal and reputable sources, as fake products with inferior quality and standards can be unsafe for consumption.

Hans said: “Those with limited income are most vulnerable during this crisis as they are most likely to also consume unsafe substitute products.”

“Alcohol produced and sold illegally outside of government regulation could be significantly toxic or harmful to consumers, is of inconsistent quality and are untaxed. Now more than ever, it is important that safe and responsible drinking guidelines are communicated to the public.”

Australia: New online liquor and gaming tool reveals Tamworth alcohol-fuelled behaviour improving in 2020

Northern Daily Leader By Jacinta Dickins August 14, 2020

Tamworth drinkers have been on their best behaviour this year, as the number of alcohol-fuelled offensive conduct takes a downward turn.

A new online tool designed to make licencing more transparent has also revealed Tamworth hasn't been as badly behaved on the drink as they have in previous years.

The local government area saw a 20 per cent decline in the number of drunk offensive behaviour reports compared to last year.

Alcohol-fuelled domestic assaults rose dramatically from March 2018 to March 2019, with 223 cases for every 100,000 residents in the Tamworth LGA.

In the same period to this March, that number had shrunk by just over 17 per cent.

In terms of offensive conduct, the number of reported incidents decreased by 20.9 per cent between 2019 to 2020.

Alcohol-fuelled malicious damage was also down this year to last's by five per cent.

The only data from this year which showed an increase in occurrences was non-domestic assault.

In 2018, there were 225 reported cases of this violence per 100,000 people.

This dropped dramatically in 2019 by 21 per cent.

This year though, it rose by just two percent.

The NSW Government launched the new online tool to make it easier for people to search the latest liquor licence information.

It includes demographic, alcohol-related crime and health data for every suburb and LGA in the State.

"This will improve transparency around liquor licence applications and empower communities to respond to local challenges," customer service MP Victor Dominello explained.

Mr Dominello said the tool has the same data which the NSW Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority considers when assessing applications.

"[It] will also help applicants develop a plan of management that provides a safe environment for patrons," Mr Dominello said.

The online tool is can be found at livedata.liquorandgaming.nsw.gov.au.

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PUBLIC HEALTH NEWS

The Price the Brain Pays: Adolescents and Drinking Binge drinking can cause long-term damage to the brain’s abilities.

Psychology Today By Anderson Spickard Jr., MD August 13, 2020

Looking down at the young woman lying comatose on the hospital bed, I shook my head. She was 18 years old, but with her round, girlish face, she looked even younger. Just a few weeks earlier her parents had sent her off to college, and I could only imagine how devastated they would feel if she came home in a coffin.

Deema was a sorority pledge who had been unable to resist the pressure to drink a fifth of vodka during a hazing ritual. When she passed out before finishing the bottle, her sorority sisters had left her on a sofa to sleep it off. A few hours later, another pledge noticed that Deema was barely breathing and called 911.

Now Deema was in intensive care, unconscious and near death from one of the highest blood-alcohol levels I had ever seen. We had pumped out her stomach and hooked her up to an IV line, but despite our best efforts, her heart rate was less than eight beats a minute. She was still unable to breathe on her own, and her skin had a blue-gray cast, as if she had already begun to slip away. There was little hope that she would survive the massive injuries to her heart, respiratory system, and brain.

Against all odds, Deema’s body was able to metabolize what could have been a lethal dose of alcohol. Six hours later, she suddenly woke up from her coma, appearing extremely frightened with no idea where she was, or why. After telling her what had happened, I reassured her that she was well on her way to making a complete recovery. Within 24 hours, she was released to the care of her still horrified family. Deema was subdued, and if she continued pledging the sorority, I never heard.

The Vulnerability of the Adolescent Brain

At the time, I was confident that Deema had not sustained any long-term damage to her vital organs. Today, I’m not so sure that she didn’t damage her most vital organ, her brain.

When I first started practicing medicine, the stages of development surrounding and including infancy were thought to be the critical period for brain development. Today we know that brain development continues on into adulthood, with young people between the ages of 15 and 25 experiencing rapid and extensive remodeling of their brains—more so than at any other stage except infancy[i]. This extreme makeover gives adolescents the brain capacity they need to move past childhood and adopt adult behaviors and perspectives.

Like the infant brain, the developing adolescent brain is damaged by exposure to high levels of alcohol. Heavy drinking can impair a young person’s memory and ability to process and relay information. Frequent binge drinking—the norm for many adolescents and young adults—can cause long-term damage to the brain’s ability to make decisions, plan, organize, focus attention, control impulses, and accurately assess risk.[ii]

Memory and Learning

Considerable research indicates that heavy drinking at any age can shrink the size of the hippocampus, an area of the brain that plays a critical role in short- and long-term memory.[iii] This damage appears to increase with blackout drinking—losing memory, but not consciousness. Disconcertingly, one in two college-age drinkers say they have experienced blackouts, and many drink to a blackout state on a regular basis.[iv]

Frequent high levels of alcohol also impair the brain’s ability to communicate with itself, which depends in part on specialized brain chemicals called neurotransmitters. Alcohol and other drugs mimic the chemistry of neurotransmitters, altering the content of the brain’s messages and slowing down the speed at which they are delivered. This malfunction interferes with the ability to learn, one of the most important tasks of adolescence.

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Perhaps because of this damage to memory and the brain’s messaging system, young people who drink heavily don’t perform as well as nondrinkers—academically, socially, or in sports. Adolescent drinkers in the United States are five times more likely than nondrinkers to drop out of high school,[v] and binge drinking may also play a role in declining rates of college graduation, as well as the increase in students who do not graduate in four years.

Brain Plasticity: Bad News/Good News

The ability of our brain cells to change in response to experience is called plasticity. This quality makes the brain vulnerable to long-term and even permanent injury from high levels of alcohol and other drugs.

But plasticity also enables the brain to repair itself, once it is out from under the burden of mind-altering substances. This capacity for self-healing enables heavy drinkers and people addicted to alcohol or other drugs to recover most, if not all, of their former brain function—if they stop drinking and using.

References

[i] For a clear description of the adolescent brain, addiction, and recovery approaches, see “An Interview with Michael L. Dennis,” Addiction: The Film, HBO, https://www.hbo.com.

[ii] For an extensive discussion of the impact of alcohol on the adolescent brain, see Susan F. Tapert et al., “Alcohol and the Adolescent Brain—Human Studies,” National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov.

[iii] Thomas P. Beresford et al., “Hippocampus Volume Loss due to Chronic Heavy Drinking,” Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research 30, no. 11 (2006): 1866–70.

[iv] Aaron White and Ralph Hingson, “The Burden of Alcohol Use: Excessive Alcohol Consumption and Related Consequences among College Students,” Alcohol Research: Current Reviews 35, no. 2 (2014): 201–18.

[v] “Alcohol and Drug Problem Overview,” The Partnership at Drugfree.org, http://www.drugfree.org.

No evidence that parents supplying alcohol to adolescents has a protective effect

Medical Xpress by National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) August 13, 2020

A new report by researchers at the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC), UNSW Sydney found no evidence that parental supply of alcohol to adolescents has a protective effect to avoid later alcohol harms.

The report also found that parental supply of just 'sips' of alcohol is associated with increased risks of adverse alcohol outcomes relative to no supply.

Lead author, Alexandra Aiken said: "Whilst many parents may supply sips of alcohol to their underage children as a harm reduction strategy, results shows that supply of sips exists on a continuum of increasing risk of adverse outcomes."

Data were analysed from the Australian Parental Supply of Alcohol Longitudinal Study (APSALS) cohort of 1,910 adolescents and their parents, recruited in the first year of secondary school and followed up annually over seven years.

"Parental supply of sips in one year was associated with increased risk of binge drinking and alcohol-related harms a year later, compared with no supply. As the quantity of alcohol supplied increased, so too did the risk of adverse outcomes," said Ms Aiken.

'Sipping' is the most common form of alcohol consumption among children and young adolescents, is usually supervised, and is associated with child perceptions of parental approval and familial modelling of alcohol behaviours.

"While parents supplying larger amounts of alcohol is associated with worse outcomes, even supplying relatively small quantities such as sips increases the risk of adverse outcomes for adolescents relative to no supply," said Ms Aiken.

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"Relative to no parental supply, parental supply of even small amounts of alcohol in early adolescence may hasten alcohol initiation, may be perceived by children as permissiveness and approval, and may reduce barriers to alcohol use, all of which in turn might encourage further alcohol consumption."

Alcohol consumption is a leading contributor to the disease burden amongst adolescents and young adults and is linked to a range of acute negative health outcomes including the development of alcohol use disorder.

"We believe there is now a strong case for the development of a parent-based intervention focussed on reducing parental provision of alcohol to their children, including the provision of sips."

Explore further: Last call for parents who supply teens with booze

INDUSTRY NEWS

Wine industry dismayed at U.S. decision to continue 25% tariffs

Capital Press By Sierra Dawn, Mcclain August 14, 2020

The U.S. will keep a 25% tariff on European wines imposed in October , the U.S. Trade Representative announced Wednesday.

The decision shocked American wine industry leaders, who over the past 10 months have sent more than 24,000 comments to the USTR and over 42,700 letters to Congress seeing an end to the tariffs. Fourteen senators and 164 representatives had also called for an end to the tariffs.

At first glance, industry leaders say, it may seem that a duty on European wines would help domestic producers and scrub out foreign competition. But American wine producers say the import tax has damaged overall wine-drinking culture and put some distributors out of business.

"I'm surprised and disappointed. Why is the USTR ignoring us? A spectacular failure in judgment is the

only thing I could say. At the very least, they sure seem to be indifferent to the staggering harm they're causing the U.S. wine industry," Ben Aneff, president of the U.S. Wine Trade Alliance, told the Capital Press.

In a statement Wednesday, the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America criticized the decision, saying tariff relief is desperately needed during the pandemic.

In October the U.S. imposed the 25% tariff on wines from France, Spain, Germany and UK as part of U.S. retaliation against the European Union in response to subsidies it gives to Airbus, a European aerospace company.

Wine industry leaders across the nation, including Jana McKamey, executive director of the Oregon Winemakers Association, have told the Capital Press for months that it is inappropriate — and ineffective — for the USTR to use wine as a "retaliatory pawn" for unrelated industries.

The industry has been spared additional threatened tariffs — such as a 100% tariff in January and another tariff on French sparkling wine in July — and each victory was followed by a celebration. But this 25% tariff has remained in place since October 2019, and winemakers aren't celebrating the decision this time.

The tariff, wine leaders say, has disproportionately hurt U.S. businesses and winemakers more than the European targets they were intended to harm.

Aneff, of the U.S. Wine Trade Alliance, said industry data calculated over the past several months nationwide show that for every dollar of damage done in Europe, these tariffs have inflicted $4.50 of harm on U.S. businesses.

What's more, Aneff said, European winemakers simply shifted markets and exported more of their high-demand wines to Asia and other parts of the world.

"The tariff on wine has utterly failed to punish European firms," he said.

Direct U.S. importers have been hit hardest, but industry leaders from winegrowers' associations in Oregon, Washington and California say a whole web of

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businesses have been hurt: vineyards, wineries, restaurants and bars, retailers, manufacturers, hospitality businesses and transportation industries.

Although wine industry leaders are frustrated with Wednesday's decision, many are calling for an even bigger flood of letters to lawmakers and the USTR demanding change.

"We will not stay quiet," said Aneff.

Phillips Distilling names new CEO

Store Brands By David Salazar August 13, 2020

Independently owned distilled spirits company Phillips Distilling has new leadership. The Minneapolis-based company appointed Andrew England its new CEO.

England joins Phillips Distilling from National CineMedia, where he was CEO and director of the cinema media seller. In his new role, England will lead growth and expanded distribution of the company’s branded portfolio, as well well as oversee the company’s private label efforts under the Distiller Sales Co. and continue to expand Phillips’ contract manufacturing business in Princeton, Minn.

"After an extensive search, we are delighted to welcome Andy England as our new CEO," said Brad Johnson, principal shareholder and chair of Phillips Distilling. "We believe Andy's established track record and breadth of business experience in expanding distribution while delivering growth and returns are critical to lead our business. His strategic leadership and proven ability to identify opportunities for development will ensure Phillips Distilling continues to be a leading innovator in the spirits industry."

Besides his time at CineMedia, England brings to Phillips a 10-year stint at MillerCoors, where he led the company’s 200-person marketing and strategy department in revamping the go-to-market approach for such brands as Coors Light and Miller

Light. England’s efforts brought Coors Light to the No.2 share brand in beer, overtaking Budweiser, and included three-fold increase in Blue Moon and the launch of Redd’s Apple Ale.

"This is an extraordinary time in the marketplace. I am excited for the opportunity to join a company that has been producing some of America's most celebrated spirits for over a century," England said. "The company's focus on leading with innovation while continuing to grow its strong existing portfolio of spirits will allow me to build upon my past experience to help take the company to the next level."

DAILY NEWS

TTB Appoints Mary Ryan New Administrator

Brewbound By Jessica Infante August 13, 2020

he U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) has named Mary Ryan as its new administrator, effective August 16.

“TTB is an outstanding organization with a proud past and a strong culture,” assistant secretary for tax policy David Kautter said in a press release. “It is my sincere belief that it will continue to prosper and not only maintain but improve its standard of excellence with Mary as its leader.”

Ryan has led the department for more than a year. She was named acting administrator last year after longtime TTB administrator John Manfreda died in May 2019. Ryan had previously served as deputy administrator, a role she held for nine years.

In her role as administrator, Ryan will oversee the permitting and regulation of companies in the alcohol, tobacco and firearms industries, as well as the collection of about $20 billion in federal excise taxes from those industries.

The TTB’s acting deputy administrator is Nicholas Colucci, who also serves as the assistant administrator of the Office of Field Operations.

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Ryan has worked at the TTB and its predecessor, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, since 1991, the TTB said in a press release.

During her long career at the department, Ryan has held several positions: deputy assistant chief counsel for alcohol and tobacco from 1997-2003, deputy chief counsel from 2003-2005, assistant administrator for the Office of Field Operations from 2005-2010, and deputy administrator from 2010-2019.

In her time as the assistant administrator for the Office of Field Operation, Ryan launched the Intelligence Division, which entailed “securing a new agent workforce, and initiating an analytics-driven enforcement approach to address tax fraud and diversion.” She also managed the TTB’s permit and tax processing functions and helped improve “business processes through increased automation to enhance customer experience and service levels,” the release said.

Before joining the TTB, Ryan clerked for U.S. District Judge John Lewis Smith for the District of Columbia. She attended Georgetown University and Georgetown University Law Center.

‘It is clear that the alcohol sales ban does not work’ (opinion)

IOL By Hellen Ndlovu August 14, 2020

Back in the 1920’s, Al Capone was a notorious gangster and bootlegger who ran the streets of Chicago. He rose from being a street thug to becoming an underworld mob boss when he took advantage of the era of alcohol prohibition in the United States in the 1920 and 1930s when the production, importation, transportation and sale of alcohol was outlawed.

Capone made tons of money smuggling illegally imported alcohol into the US, in defiance of the ban, wresting control of the lucrative illicit market.

He was, at the height of his reign and terror, named America’s most wanted gangster by the federal government.

The idea behind the Volstead Act of 1919 – which outlawed the production and sale of alcohol – was ostensibly to minimise the harm that alcohol consumption was doing to society.

However, prohibition had the opposite effect. It drove the once legal and flourishing trade in alcohol underground and ceded it to a ruthless criminal underworld led by Capone.

In New York, the prohibition meant that another gangster, Charles “Lucky” Luciano, would rise up the underworld circles to become the most feared underworld boss in his city at age 34.

According to historians, Luciano, who also had close ties to Capone, introduced the concept of “organised crime” when he got all mafia bosses around the table to urge them to work together instead of fighting over turf and in the process, formed a board of directors among the crime families.

Following the introduction of the prohibition, the US government watched in horror as the prohibition decimated not just the alcohol industry and its value chain, but associated industries as well, resulting in a jobs bloodbath.

It is estimated that prohibition cost the federal government just over $11bn in lost tax revenue ($$140bn in today’s terms) while over 1 000 people a year died from drinking unsafe alcohol.

Christopher Snowdon, head of lifestyle economics at UK think tank, the Institute of Economic Affairs, said during a recent webinar in South Africa that one of the damaging things prohibition does is that it erodes the respect for the law.

He said that word scofflaw was invented in America in the 1920’s to describe people who were ignoring the prohibition.

“The law of prohibition was a very unpopular policy and when people don’t believe a policy is justifiable or fair,

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they do not feel very bad about disobeying it. They feel that they are being pushed onto the black market rather than their choosing to break the law – they feel like they have no choice.

“The respect for the law especially during a public health pandemic, especially when you are relying on goodwill and cooperation of citizens, is eroded when you start bringing in prohibitions that are seen as widely unfair and unnecessary,” he said.

Snowdon said history has taught us that prohibition always makes matters worse, “that’s the whole lesson from history which we keep failing to learn”.

Back at home, when government prohibited alcohol sales at the end of March, reports of pineapples and yeast flying off the shelves came to the fore as soon as April, and by May, police in the Eastern Cape reported unfortunate fatalities as a result of people consuming unsafe home-brewed alcohol.

In those two months, the alcohol industry value chain also lost over 100 000 jobs.

Let us explore the facts in weighing and deciding whether the ban is justifiable.

The legal alcohol industry recorded sales of R137 billion in 2019, amounting to 3% of nominal GDP. It provides jobs either directly or indirectly to one million people.

The industry contributed R51bn in direct and indirect taxes.

The industry also supports agriculture by purchasing locally produced raw materials inputs such as hops, malted barley, apple concentrate, and maize.

At South African Breweries, our value chain is wide-reaching and incorporates a total of 3 739 suppliers of which 1 345 are SMMEs, supporting in excess of 140 000 jobs.

In addition, our business sources agricultural inputs from more than 1 277 farmers of which 757 are emerging farmers.

The longer we are unable to operate, the bigger the ripple effect will be.

The township economy, which is reliant on legal liquor outlets, is on the brink of bankruptcy.

The alcohol industry has asked the government to defer R5bn in excise and custom duties due for the months of July and August until it is allowed to trade again.

This is a loss of valuable revenue to the fiscus at a time the finance minister predicts a R300 billion revenue shortfall.

Research and learnings from the previous ban shows that prohibition of the legal sale of alcohol leads to exponential growth in the production of illicit alcohol.

Euromonitor’s Illicit Alcohol Research Review indicated that illicit trade in alcohol was valued at almost R13bn in 2017, relating to roughly 50 million litres of absolute alcohol, which represents 15% of the total alcohol market in the country.

While at SAB, we support policies and measures for reducing pressure on the public healthcare system, it is clear that the alcohol sales ban does not work.

Government must work with the alcohol industry to phase in the return of legal alcohol sales under a well-regulated, controlled and safe environment; or we risk ceding a huge chunk of this valuable industry to a local version of Al Capone.

According to Dr Westley Clark, the dean’s executive professor for public health and psychology at Santa Clara University in the US, “strategies that focus on single solutions actually does more harm than good. If we are going to get through this pandemic, we need the participation of all sectors of the economy, including government.”

Prohibition of alcohol sales comes with its consequences, and relying on this and similar strategies is shambolic, and cannot be regarded as a silver bullet strategy at a time like this.

This pandemic, and other similar challenges in the future, require a holistic approach without avoiding the complexity of the problem.

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