TTB Shutdown Risk Returns Ahead of January 30 Deadline

Wine Institute members are advised that new obstacles to completing the federal government funding process mean that there is a growing risk of another Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) shutdown at midnight Friday. Prior to this week, Congress had been making progress on completing the outstanding appropriations bills and was expected to finish work this week with Senate passage of a six-bill package funding a wide cross section of the government including TTB. However, the events of this past weekend in Minneapolis have raised new objections to passing the omnibus package.

At this time, there is no agreement on how to proceed in the Senate, putting passage of the entire package in jeopardy. The current negotiations on government funding are extremely fluid, making it hard to assess the exact risk of a shutdown. However, if Congress and the White House cannot reach agreement on a path forward, TTB is likely to have another lapse in funding, causing a temporary closure of the agency. Should there be a shutdown, we do not anticipate that it would last for an extended period. We will keep members updated as new information becomes available.