Alcohol Abuse Treatment and Prevention Act
This bill modestly increases the tax on malt beverages by 2.4 cents per 12-ounce bottle or can to fund alcohol and drug treatment and prevention programs, and alcohol-related law enforcement. Fighting the tragedies of drunk driving deaths and alcohol-fueled domestic violence calls for a smart funding source, and a positive solution. The beer tax has not been raised since 1969, when Neil Armstrong walked on the moon!
(Or
click here if you would like a pdf file of the Power Point presentation)
Credit Phil Hands/Wisconsin State Journal
Some Interesting Facts about Wisconsin's current Beer Tax
Wisconsin Beer Producers Have It Very Easy
- Wisconsin has the third lowest beer tax in the nation (6.5¢ per gallon)
- Wisconsin’s beer tax hasn’t been raised since 1969, the year that Neil Armstrong walked on the Moon—37 years ago
- The state beer tax has lost 82% of its value to inflation.
- Wisconsin beer producers have two major tax breaks:
1. Beer produced in Wisconsin that is exported elsewhere is exempt from the WI beer tax
2. Producers that brew less than 300,000 barrels a year, pay only half of the tax on the first 50,000 barrels
- 69% of all beer produced in Wisconsin is exempt from the Wisconsin beer tax because it is exported
- The remaining 31% is taxed at a mixture of $1 to $2 a barrel
- Only one Wisconsin beer producer (Miller) pays 100% of the state beer tax. The remaining 65 Wisconsin beer producers use state beer tax credits to pay much less.
- 79% of all beer producers in Wisconsin pay less than $5,000 annually in Wisconsin beer tax
Wisconsin’s Alcohol Problem
- We lead the nation in moderate to heavy alcohol consumption among pregnant women
- We have the highest adult binge-drinking rate
- We have the second highest college student binge-drinking rate
- We are tied for 2nd highest (with Delaware) in the percentage of driver fatalities in which blood alcohol concentrations exceed .08. Only Montana is worse
- We have the highest underage drinking rate in the country
- Wisconsin ranks 4th highest per-capita for alcohol consumption from beer
- We rank 48th worst in the nation in alcohol-related per capital health care expenses
- In Wisconsin, alcohol and drug abuse is the 4th leading cause of death, behind heart disease, cancer and stroke
- In 2006, there were 44,394 OWI and PACs (Prohibited Alcohol Content) violations issued in Wisconsin
- In 2005 there were 369 alcohol-related driving fatalities, and 5,992 alcohol-related driving injuries
- The National Safety Board and the Coalition to End Needless Death on our Roadways (a physician group) listed Wisconsin in 2006 among their “Fatal Fifteen” states with the highest underage drinking death rates. Wisconsin is among 10 states on the list for the third consecutive year
- In 2005, almost 63,300 Wisconsin residents received publicly funded substance abuse treatment ― the great majority for alcohol abuse
- Between 40% and 50% of all alcohol is either illegally or pathologically consumed
Credit Phil Hands/Wisconsin State Journal
The Costs of Our Alcohol Problem
- The $9.7 million raised by the state beer tax last year covered only a fraction of treatment costs
- Wisconsin alone pays $825 million in annual alcohol-related heathcare costs
- Wisconsin pays an additional estimated $2.7 billion in:
o Policing and court costs |
o Lost productivity costs |
o Incarceration costs |
o Academic failure costs |
o Traffic crash costs |
o Premature death costs |
- Each Wisconsin resident pays only $1.82 a year in beer taxes
- But also $18.64 in alcohol treatment costs
- and $154 in alcohol-related healthcare costs ($86 specifically from beer)
- and $500 in alcohol-related criminal justice and societal costs
Newspapers Across Wisconsin Support Raising Wisconsin's Beer Tax
Newspapers across our great state supported AB 287, arguing that the colossal costs of alcohol abuse in Wisconsin could be addressed at long last in this sensible and timely bill.