Creating a Wisconsin Beer Commission and making an appropriation. (FE)

What it would have done

Summary by the Legislative Reference Bureau, the Legislature's nonpartisan drafting office. It's their wording, not ours.

This bill creates a seven-member Wisconsin beer commission, attached to the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP). Members of the beer commission are nominated by the secretary of DATCP for three-year terms and are subject to confirmation by the senate. The members of the beer commission must include four members representing Wisconsin brewers or brewpubs that manufacture not more than 300,000 barrels of fermented malt beverages (beer) annually, one member representing Wisconsin brewers that manufacture more than 300,000 barrels of beer annually, one member representing Wisconsin beer wholesalers, and a chairperson. No member of the commission, except the chairperson, may receive any salary for services performed as a commission member.

The beer commission must promote Wisconsin beer, directly or indirectly, including through the marketing and advertising of beer and research related to the marketing and advertising of beer. The beer commission may maintain and operate a place for the sale of Wisconsin beer at the state fair park and the State Fair Park Board must make reasonable and adequate space available for the beer commission to do so. When selling beer at the state fair park, the beer commission may sell only beer produced in Wisconsin and must make available for sale a wide variety of brands of Wisconsin beer. Beer sold by the beer commission at the state fair park must be purchased from the wholesalers whose designated sales territory for the brands sold includes the state fair park or, for any brand for which no wholesaler has a designated sales territory that includes the state fair park, the brewer or brewpub that produced the brand.

Who's behind it

8 representatives are its authors⁠. 5 are Republicans and 3 are Democrats.

4 more lawmakers signed on in support⁠.