How Hiccups in 'Business as Usual' Send the Alcohol and Tobacco Industries out of Whack
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
By David Gaudet
When the Federal Government halts or suspends “business as usual,” implications are felt near and far. The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax Trade Bureau (TTB) – the arm of the government responsible for everything businesses within the industry need to create, market and distribute age-restricted goods – for example, gets no reprieve. Some might say the Food & Drug Administration (FDA), another Federal Government agency, is stuck in the crossfires.
Alcohol and Tobacco Tax Trade Bureau
On the list of the TTB’s responsibilities is the approval of new product-labels, licenses and ingredients for beer, wine and spirits. Adult beverage crafters and manufacturers with plans to introduce new products into the market will most likely encounter delays to their go-to-market strategy, if they submit applications to the TTB’s product approval channel during a pause in traditional Federal Government activity.1, 4
Food & Drug Administration
The potential for a spike in illegal tobacco-product sales volume is plausible during a government shutdown. Although FDA-backed stings cease during a shutdown, stings conducted at the state and local levels do not. And good thing because the country’s entirely user-fee funded tobacco program remains up and running during a Federal Government shutdown.2 On the contrary, vaping products are not funded through manufacturer’s submission fees, and it is unclear how these products and related initiatives would fair during a government shutdown.3
To avoid a shutdown of your own, even during times of government pause, at The BARS Program, we encourage you and your team to remain as diligent as ever when it comes to asking for identification and adhering to all protocols associated with the lawful sale of age-restricted products.
If you’re looking for assistance with initiating or updating compliance standards within your business, contact The BARS Program at customerservice@barsprogram.com or 1-877-540-5500. We’ll draw upon our years of experience within the field of compliance to help you understand the unwavering necessity of such discipline.
Sources
1 Fortune: Government Shutdown Means You May Not See Any New Beers or Wines for a While http://fortune.com/2019/01/02/government-shutdown-beer-wine/
2 npr: As Partial Shutdown Continues, FDA Prepares To Furlough Employees https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2018/12/24/679820514/as-partial-shutdown-continues-fda-prepares-to-furlough-employees
3 Consumer Safety.org: Drug and Device Safety During the 2019 Government Shutdownhttps://www.consumersafety.org/news/2019-government-shutdown/
4 delish: The Government Shutdown Has Gone On So Long There's Fear Of Food Stamp Funding Running Out By Marchhttps://www.delish.com/food-news/a25939756/government-shutdown-affecting-food-drink-stamps-fda/
Back to all blog articles
