Businesses in Michigan’s Great Southwest along the Makers Trail, and others all across the state, will now be able to legally sample and sell all of their products at the same location thanks to a bill fixing a previously misinterpreted law that kept them from doing so in the past.
State Senator Kim LaSata’s tasting room fix bill is now headed to the governor’s desk for final approval.
Legislation sponsored by LaSata was designed specifically to fix an unexpected interpretation of an existing tasting room law and was enrolled by the state Senate on Tuesday, and now is off to the governor.
LaSata says, “This bill ensures our state’s producers of wine, beer, and other spirits may sample and sell all of their offerings at the same location,” and adds, “It’s a simple way to help support small businesses and create jobs at a time when our state is reopening from the pandemic.”
An interpretation of an existing law did not allow for beer, wine and spirits to be served at the same tasting room location without a physical barrier between them, leaving producers unable to operate their businesses as intended.
Senate Bill 49 would reform the law to allow wineries, breweries, and distilleries to operate both an on-premises tasting room and an off-premises tasting room at the same location, under certain conditions. The bill is a reintroduction of one from last session that, due to a technicality, did not take effect despite being signed into law.
LaSata said her 21st Senate District is home to 28 small winemakers, 17 small distillers, and 23 micro-brewers, and adds, “The wine and craft beverage industries are growing businesses in Southwest Michigan and across our state — contributing over $5 billion each year to our state economy and supporting tens of thousands of jobs.” She concludes, “For over a year, small producers have faced a barrier preventing them from serving all of their Michigan made products at one location. This bill gets the job done, and I look forward to the governor signing it soon.”
