—New Report by National Association of Wine Retailers Examines Source of Protectionist Alcohol Laws—
SACRAMENTO, Calif., Jan. 23, 2018 — Over the past five election cycles, American alcohol wholesalers have poured more than $107 million into state political campaigns, according to a new report released by the National Association of Wine Retailers (NAWR). This enormous sum amounts to more than double the political contributions given by the rest of the alcohol industry (wineries, brewers, distillers, retailers) combined.
The new report, “Wholesale Protection 2018: A Report on Alcohol Wholesaler Campaign Contributions” examines the amount of money America’s alcohol middlemen give to state political campaigns, to whom they give it and the differences on a state-by-state level. The report is available for download here: https://nawr.org/commentary/
Among the additional findings in the report are:
• State and National wholesaler trade associations are the most generous donors
•Candidates in Washington, Texas, Illinois, New York, California, Florida, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio receive the most donations from alcohol wholesalers
• Individual Texas Governors and Texas state party leaders received the most donations over the past five election cycles
* Of the past five election cycles, 2012 saw the most alcohol wholesaler contributions to state political campaigns: $28.3 million.
“No one who has closely and fairly examined the alcohol distribution system in America disputes that it is designed to protect middlemen wholesalers from competition nor that its design is archaic,” said Tom Wark, executive director of the NAWR. “This report looks at how much wholesalers are willing to spend to keep the system that way.”
About the National Association of Wine Retailers
The NAWR is a national organization of independent fine wine retailers who advocate on behalf of their members for modernization of the alcohol regulatory system. More information about NAWR can be found at www.nawr.org.
