Here's Why You're Paying Less For Beer Now In CT

CONNECTICUT — A new law directing Connecticut’s excise tax on beer to be reduced by 16.7 percent went into effect on July 1.

The tax cut is the result of the biennial state budget that Gov. Ned Lamont and the state legislature approved in 2021.

The National Beer Wholesalers Association reports that the beer industry yields $3.8 billion in economic output in Connecticut and supports 21,228 jobs in the state, with professions ranging from careers in agriculture, manufacturing, and retail. According to the Connecticut Brewers’ Guild, the state has more than 120 locally-owned breweries.

The tax reduction on beer that is scheduled to take effect is as follows:

The tax cut comes on top of a package of beer industry reforms that Lamont enacted during his first term to support growth in the craft brewery industry. That package:

• Updated Connecticut’s blue laws by increasing the amount of beer that breweries could sell to an adult for off-premise consumption from nine liters (about 1 case of 12-ounce cans) to nine gallons (about 4 cases of 12-ounce cans);
• Consolidated the four beer manufacturer permits – beer, brew pub, beer and brew pub, and farm brewery – into one permit;
• Created a Connecticut Craft Café permit, under which all manufacturing permit holders have the ability to sell all other types of alcohol in the state. (For example, wineries, cideries, and distilleries are now able to sell Connecticut craft beer); and
• Allowed craft breweries to hold multiple manufacturing permits so they can also make wine, cider, spirits, and mead all under one roof.

"Connecticut’s craft brewery industry has been booming in recent years, and it is evidenced by the growth of hundreds of new local jobs," Lamont said in a statement. "This tax cut is another way that we can support our locally-owned, small businesses."