A federal Judge in Texas this week sided with a group of distilling advocates in ruling that federal laws banning the practice of people making their own whiskey and bourbon at home are unconstitutional.
The judge issued a permanent injunction against the enforcement of the ban against the Hobby Distiller’s Association but has allowed 14 days for the government to respond.
Court Ruling
U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman granted relief to the Hobby Distiller’s Association who were plaintiffs in a case against the Alcohol Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau.
The Hobby Distiller’s Association is based in Texas and has an estimated 1,300 members across the country. The group advocates for the legalization of home-distilling of alcoholic beverages.
Unconstitutional Ban
The plaintiffs had alleged that the laws barring them from producing alcohol for personal use were unconstitutional and the judge ultimately agreed.
“Plaintiffs sued, alleging that these provisions are unconstitutional because they exceed Congress’s enumerated powers. Plaintiffs seek declaratory relief and a permanent injunction to prevent their enforcement against them,” said the court opinion.
Granted Request
Judge Pittman granted the plaintiff’s request in this case, declaring two statutes contributing to a home distillery ban were unconstitutional.
“Accordingly, having advanced Plaintiffs’ motion to the merits, the Court GRANTS Plaintiffs’ request for relief (ECF No. 17) and DECLARES that 26 U.S.C. § 5601(6) and 26 U.S.C. § 5178(a)(1)(B) are UNCONSTITUTIONAL,” said Judge Pittman in the court opinion.
Ruling Reasoning
Judge Pittman reasoned that the ban in the law was not a valid exercise of Congress’s taxing power.
“Thus, Congress did nothing more than statutorily ferment a crime—without any reference to taxation, exaction, protection of revenue, or sums owed to the government,” Pittman wrote.
Tax Interest
The federal government has an interest in preventing home distilleries because they could be missing out on tax revenues that they might otherwise be entitled to. However, Pittman ruled that this consideration is not enough to enforce a total ban.
“While prohibiting the possession of an at-home still meant to distill beverage alcohol might be convenient to protect tax revenue on spirits, it is not a sufficiently clear corollary to the positive power of laying and collecting taxes,” he wrote.
Permanently Enjoined
This court order, signed July 10, will prevent the United States federal government from enforcing the two statutes banning home distilleries.
However, the court also granted a stay of 14 days on the written opinion “to allow the federal government to seek emergency relief at the appellate level, should they choose to do so.”
Hobby Distiller’s Association Statement
In the aftermath of the court’s opinion, the Hobby Distiller’s Association (HDA) took to social media to celebrate, thanking their supporters.
“We Won! First of all, thank you all for your past support of the Hobby Distiller’s Association! Without your support our push to legalize hobby distilling in the United States would have never gotten off the ground, but here we are, still keeping up the fight over 10 years later!” said a Facebook post from the group.
Long Fight
The HDA recounted the years-long battle that they have been fighting against the US government to legalize hobby distilling.
“As you likely recall, the HDA put up a good fight several years ago trying to get hobby distilling legalized in the United States,” the group said.
Uphill Battle
In their statement, the HDA framed the battle to legalize distilling as difficult, describing a previous attempt to get a bill passed through Congress.
“Despite being on a bill with more than 50% support in both chambers of Congress, our bill failed to be brought to the floor for a vote. There was pushback from distilling industry associations, and we feel pretty strongly that this was the reason that our bill was dropped,” said the HDA.
Never Giving Up
Despite their struggle in the legislature, the group never gave up and decided to challenge the constitutionality of the ban directly through the courts.
“Well, we never gave up the fight, and teamed up with the Competitive Enterprise Institute, to challenge the constitutionality of the law. This went to court back in April, and the presiding judge issued their ruling on July 10th, 2024. WE WON!” said the HDA Facebook post.
Not All Good News
While the HDA post was mostly celebratory, they also mentioned that the ruling left the government and individual states with some room to rain on their parade.
“However, it was not 100% good news. First, the government may choose to appeal, and the judge stayed the ruling for 14 days to give the government time to do so. Second, this does not preclude individual states from making it illegal to distill at home as a hobby,” said the HDA.
