Brewery Tax Break

Tastings at breweries, cideries and distilleries are now going to be exempt from sales tax in New York State.  The State Senate gave final passage of the legislation this week.  The announcement came today (Thursday) and now is being sent to Governor Cuomo for consideration.

The new measure was announced in a press release that came from Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo from Binghamton and Senator Patrick Gallivan from Elma who both sponsored the bill along with Assembly Minority Leader Brian Kolb from Canandaigua.

Currently, only tastings at wineries are exempt from sales tax.  The legislation would provide the same benefits for brewers, distillers and cideries as wineries get.  According to statistics from Empire State Development, New York currently has 460 wineries, 278 breweries, 124 distilleries and 35 cideries.

According to information in the release the state has seen a 183 percent increase in craft beverage producers since 2011.  In 2012 statistics show that craft beverages had an estimated economic impact of $27 billion in the state.