For the fifth consecutive year, the Beer Institute and its members are proud to highlight the federal government’s “We Don’t Serve Teens” program that provides parents and other adults with the tools they need to help reduce teen drinking.

We share the government’s concern over research indicating that most teens who drink get alcohol from parents and other adults and fully support the program's message that serving alcohol to teens is unsafe, illegal and irresponsible.

The Federal Trade Commission, as part of this consumer awareness effort, has chosen to focus on this important message during the month of September, when schools around the country are back in session for a new year.

Members of the Beer Institute support the “We Don’t Serve Teens” campaign in a variety of ways. They highlight it on their respective websites, secure outdoor, print and radio advertising and focus on getting this important message out to the public in their corporate hometowns – all towards the goal of eliminating underage drinking.

Our efforts remind adults that most underage drinkers get alcohol from family members or other adults and if teens can’t get alcohol, they can’t drink it. In addition, there are specific calls to action: don’t buy or provide alcohol to underage persons; talk to your kids about teen drinking; and visit DontServeTeens.gov for more information.

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We’ve developed an extensive code to help guide our members in advertising their products. Please take a moment to review our guidelines and provide any appropriate feedback.

• Advertising & Marketing Code
• Advertising Buying Guidelines
  

Advertising Complaints:

File an Initial Advertising Complaint
If you wish to send an advertising complaint to a brewer, please send your complaint to adcode@beerinstitute.org. Your complaint will be forwarded to the appropriate brewer and the brewer will contact you with a response. This is for all complaints that have not been previously submitted to a brewer.

File a Code Compliance Review Board Complaint
The forms for filing a Code Compliance Review Board (CCRB) advertising complaint are listed below. If you have filed an initial complaint and received a response from the brewer and would like to have your complaint reviewed by the third-party Code Compliance Review Board (CCRB), you may complete the form and the third-party review process will be initiated. The CCRB will notify you of its findings.

• Online CCRB Advertising Complaint Form
• Download PDF of CCRB Advertising Complaint Form

View CCRB Complaint Decisions below:

Bud Light
June 14, 2006 - Hidden Bud Lights

Michelob Ultra Amber
June 14, 2006 - Touch Football

Miller Lite
June 14, 2006 - You Poke It, You Own It

Budweiser
July 22, 2006 - Budweiser Surfing Billboard

Michelob Ultra Amber
February 14, 2007 - Poison Flowers

Bud Light
April 18, 2007 - But He Has Bud Light

Bud Light
August 27, 2007 - Fist Bump

Bud Light
August 27, 2007 - Rock, Paper, Scissors

Sparks
October 24, 2008 - Tiny Entourage

Bud Light
March 23, 2009 - Meeting

Bud Light
April 11, 2013 - Journey and Lucky Chair  

View CCRB Annual Reports:

2010-2011 Code Compliance Review Board Annual Report

2008-2009 Code Compliance Review Board Annual Report

2007 Code Compliance Review Board Annual Report

2006 Code Compliance Review Board Annual Report

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Annual Driver License Booklets 

Brewers partner with law enforcement to provide the annual Driver License Booklet as part of their continuing efforts to help prevent underage access to alcohol beverages.  The booklet suggests tips for checking the validity of I.D.s and provides examples of valid license formats for all 50 states plus US Territories, US Department of State, and the Canadian provinces.

ServSafe Alcohol

This program is part of the multidimensional training program for restaurant managers provided by the National Restaurant Association's Educational Foundation. Its curriculum focuses on preventing alcohol abuse situations, including underage purchases. The course is available through various colleges and universities and state restaurant associations.

Good Sport

Through communication, training, and management techniques, the "Good Sport" program helps stadium operators, team owners, and concessionaires prevent disruptive crowd behavior at stadium events, street festivals, concerts and other special events.

Learn2Serve

This program is a leading provider of government accredited online certification training courses and employer learning management and reporting systems. Learn2Serve courses are created for hotel, restaurant, bar, convenience store, and grocery employees and managers. Learn2Serve includes interactive and self-paced alcohol seller and server certification.

Operation I.D.

This program provides a variety of materials to support retail establishments, including a driver's license identification guide with examples from all 50 states, snap-on plastic wristbands, and pocket-sized "We-I.D." cards in an effort to end underage drinking.

TIPS (Training in Intervention Procedures for Servers of Alcohol)

Developed by Dr. Morris Chafetz, founding director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, TIPS trains servers and sellers of alcohol beverages in techniques for serving alcohol responsibly by properly checking IDs, preventing drunk driving and avoiding other alcohol abuse situations. The industry is responsible for training nearly 250 servers per day in TIPS techniques throughout the year.

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BACCHUS (Boosting Alcohol Consciousness Concerning the Health of University Students)

The BACCHUS Network is a university and community based network focusing on comprehensive health and safety initiatives. It is the mission of the 501c3 non-profit organization to actively promote student and young adult based, campus and community-wide leadership on healthy and safe lifestyle decisions concerning alcohol abuse, tobacco use, illegal drug use, unhealthy sexual practices, and other high-risk behaviors. Affiliates are concerned with the health of their students, their institution, and their community.

Guidelines for Alcohol Beverage Marketing on College and University Campuses

In their campus marketing efforts, brewers support guidelines developed by the Inter-Association Task Force on Campus Alcohol Issues. These guidelines help ensure that campus beer marketing activities are conducted responsibly along with the approval of appropriate campus officials.

National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week

NCAAW is an annual week of education and awareness activities held on more than 3,000 campuses nationwide every October. The U.S. brewing industry has been a charter sponsor of the event since its inception in 1984. In addition to local support from beer wholesalers, the "Know When To Say When" Poster Competition awards $20,000 for responsibility poster concepts.

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We work with several national organizations to prevent and alcohol abuse in communities across the country.

Alcoholic Beverage Medical Research Foundation 

ABMRF is the largest independent non-profit foundation in North America devoted solely to supporting research on the effects of alcohol with studies ranging from drinking behavior of youth, problems of drinking and road safety, familial influences on the development of drinking practices, and genetic influences on drinking. Over the past 25 years, ABMRF has worked to shift the emphasis in alcohol research from a problem-oriented to a population-based approach.

Beer Institute Advertising and Marketing Code

Beginning in 1943, the brewing industry first developed guidelines regarding alcohol marketing. Beer Institute developed these guidelines as a service to provide brewers with guidance to maintain the highest ethical standards in their advertising and marketing

TEAM (Techniques for Effective Alcohol Management) Coalition

Begun as a program of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in 1985, TEAM is a unique alliance of professional and collegiate sports, entertainment facilities, stadium service partners, concessionaires, brewers, broadcasters, government safety experts, and others united in an effort to promote responsible drinking and positive fan behavior. TEAM’s mission is to provide effective alcohol service training in public assembly facilities and promote responsible alcohol consumption that enhances the entertainment experience while reducing alcohol-related incidents both in facilities and on surrounding roadways. TEAM and its members work to accomplish this mission through training and "Responsible Fan" education materials.

WRAP(Washington Regional Alcohol Program)

WRAP is a nationally acclaimed public/private sector coalition that fights drunk driving and underage drinking in greater Washington, D.C. Formed in 1982, WRAP informs and educates the public through a variety of programs, including the annual Holiday Sober Ride Program, which has been credited with reducing drunk-driving incidents.

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The Beer Institute works with several organizations to help give parents the tools they need to prevent underage drinking.

Facts & Conversations Series by the Health Alliance on Alcohol


A 3-year, brewer-sponsored partnership with the New York Presbyterian Healthcare System, including White Plains Hospital and the Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital, will develop a series of topic-related conversation brochures/issue papers about alcohol. Each brochure will include a 'how to' have a conversation with parents/children, family, mentors, guidance counselors/health instructors and among adults.

Family Talk

This program consists of a video and guidebook that encourages open and honest communication between parents and children to help prevent underage drinking. Developed in cooperation with authorities in education, family counseling and alcohol research, the award-winning program provides the free materials to those who call 1-800-359-TALK.

Let's Keep Talking

A free discussion guide for parents and consumers explains everything from how to drink responsibly to having a family discussion about alcoholism and alcohol abuse.

ParentFurther.com

This brewer-sponsored website provides parents with asset-building tools and information to support them in being the "most valuable players" in their children's lives. Research shows that the more Developmental Assets™ young people experience, the less likely they are to engage in a wide range of high-risk behaviors including underage drinking. Search Institute, a national leader in generating cutting-edge ideas, research and strategies for growing healthy, thriving children and adolescents, provides all the parenting content and tools

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1-800-TAXICAB

Brewers offer consumers a national taxi dispatch service and an easy to remember phone number when planning safe or alternative transportation. Radio spots, point-of-sale and packaging materials promote the 1-800-TAXICAB service.

21 Means 21 (broken link)

The national "21 Means 21" advertising campaign was developed to communicate that brewers do not want the business of America's youth.  For retailers, the "21 Means 21" message on point-of-sale materials reinforces the importance of checking IDs.

National Safe Boating Council

Dedicated to providing a forum for advancing and fostering safe boating education programs, the National Safe Boating Council is the foremost coalition for the advancement of boating safety in the nation.

Respect 21

Preventing Underage Access is a comprehensive program which focuses on numerous avenues to help keep alcohol out of the hands of minors. The program provides educational resources prepared by experts for parents and other concerned adults such as Let's Keep Talking retail signage to remind adults not to give alcohol to minors and to tell them the legal penalties in their states for doing so; and retailer training tools to help stop illegal sales to minors.

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Through conserving energy and water, reusing byproducts and waste, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and establishing comprehensive recycling programs, the brewing industry has asserted itself as a leading environmental steward.

Many brewers have constructed water treatment facilities to reduce the volume of water used in brewing. They have also taken advantage of environmentally sound energy sources such as wind and solar power. Many brewers also capture a biogas that is a byproduct of brewing processes and use it as an energy source for the brewery, reducing fossil fuel usage. Brewers also emphasize environmental awareness through their efforts to promote educational and conservational programs. Please click here to view the Beer Institute’s environmental brochure.

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Title: What is Beer Serves America
Description: Beer Serves America is an independent analysis that documents how much beer stimulates the economy, creates jobs and pays taxes. Last year beer contributed more than $246 billion to the economy.

Title: Jobs Involved in the Beer Industry
Description: Every brewery supports dozens of suppliers, from can- and bottle-manufacturers to barley farmers, hops-producers, and many more. In total, more than 2 million people are at work because of beer.

Title: Wages & Benefits from Beer
Description: Wages and benefits from brewers, distributors and retailers totaled more than $31.5 billion in 2012.

Title: Depth of Economic Impact
Description: Brewing is a major industry. The combined economic impact of brewers, distributors, retailers and our supply-chain partners totaled more than $246 billion in 2012.

Title: Why BSA is Important
Description: Brewers are not just producing a product that Americans enjoy, but we’re creating jobs that put middle-class Americans to work. More than 2 million Americans are at work because of beer.

Title: Beer’s Tax Burden
Description: Across all levels, the beer industry contributed more than $49 billion in the form of excise, business and consumption taxes to federal, state and local governments.

Title: Impact of Higher Taxes
Description: If Congress raises taxes on beer, it will be raising taxes on the American middle class. Higher beer taxes would not only increase the burden for middle-class Americans, but could lead to lay-offs for those same middle-class Americans.

Title: Don’t Overtax Beer
Description: 40 percent of what consumers pay for a beer already goes toward taxes of some kind on a national average. That makes taxes the most expensive ingredient in your beer.

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If you a member of the media and need information or assistance from the Beer Institute, please contact:

Christopher Thorne,
Vice President, Communications
cthorne@BeerInstitute.org
(202) 737-2337

Megan Kirkpatrick
Director, Communications
mkirkpatrick@BeerInstitute.org
(202) 737-2337

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Economy

America’s beer industry contributes more than $246 billion to our economy with more than 2,800 brewers and importers, 3,700 distributors and 576,000 retail establishments located across the country.

Beer boosts a wide range of industries, including farming, manufacturing, construction, transportation, service and others in nearly every community in the United States.

Jobs

Beer is more than a simple pleasure. It’s a $246 billion industry supporting 2 million American jobs. We help put people to work, from farmers to factory hands, bartenders to brewers, in nearly every community in the United States.

The last time federal excise taxes were raised, more than 60,000 Americans lost their jobs as a result. To do so again would be just as devastating, if not more so.

Taxation

Every time an American enjoys a cold, refreshing beer, 40% of their hard-earned money goes to taxes. The federal government and state governments pile extra taxes on the production and sale of beer, including regressive, invisible federal and state excise taxes.

As an industry, we’re proud to do our part in keeping America great. But the truth is, brewers and beer drinkers are paying more than our fair share of taxes already.

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The Brewers Excise and Economic Relief Act of 2013

The Beer Institute supports the Brewers Excise and Economic Relief Act of 2013 (BEER Act). This bipartisan, bicameral legislation would reduce excise taxes for all brewers and beer importers, and ultimately reduce taxes for all beer drinkers. 

Under the BEER Act of 2013:

• Small brewers would pay no federal excise tax on the first 15,000 barrels;
  
• Small brewers would pay $3.50 on barrels 15,001 to 60,000;
  
• Small brewers would pay $9 per barrel for every barrel over 60,000 and up to 2 million barrels;
  
• For brewers producing more than 2 million barrels annually, and for all beer importers regardless of size, the federal excise tax rate would be $9 per barrel for every barrel. 
  

On average, more than 40 percent of what American beer drinkers pay for a beer goes toward federal, state and local taxes—from excise to consumption to sales taxes, as well as the normal business taxes. That makes taxes the most expensive ingredient in beer today. 

H.R. 1918 - Introduced by Reps. Tom Latham (R-IA) and Ron Kind (D-WI)  

S.958 - Introduced by Senators Mark Udall (D-CO), Roy Blunt (R-MO), David Vitter (R-LA) and Michael Bennet (D-CO)

Other Issues

Equalization: A Drink is Not a Drink 

Beer Drinker's Tax Burden 

Other Legislative Priorities

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Standard Drink Myth

For more than 200 years, U.S. policymakers have recognized the significant differences between beer and hard liquor, and that laws and regulations governing the two should be different. The false notion that “a drink is a drink” is easily dispelled with a careful look at the facts.

The differences between beer and hard liquor include their alcohol concentration, the way each is produced and consumed, and the level of positive social involvement of each in local communities.

• Beer has a much lower alcohol concentration than hard liquor. Not all alcohol drinks are equal. A standard Scotch on the rocks is equal to 1.5 beers, while a Long Island Iced Tea contains as much alcohol as five beers. Another way to look at this is that a gallon of beer is less than a 12-pack, whereas a gallon of hard liquor is the equivalent of more than 85 beers.
• Not only is the alcohol content of a beer “fixed,” so is the typical package size, giving consumers greater control and more opportunity to drink responsibly. When a consumer buys a 12 oz. bottle or can of beer, that alcohol amount is set. On the other hand, hard liquor is a concentrated product, meaning the alcohol content of drinks can vary depending on how much liquor is mixed and who is mixing it.

– The most common way to consume hard liquor, through mixed drinks, results in the widest variation in alcohol content among alcohol beverages.

– The 1.5 oz. “standard serving” of hard liquor is unrealistic; the average pure alcohol content of many popular drinks is more than 70 percent higher than the mythical ‘standard serving.’ A cursory Internet search of popular liquor websites finds mixed-drink recipes calling for more than 4 oz. of hard liquor in a single serving – three times the so-called “standard serving.”

• Hard liquor is more intoxicating than beer. Medical studies demonstrate hard liquor produces higher blood alcohol content (BAC) levels, more quickly, than the same amount of alcohol from beer. For instance, 2-3 glasses of beer over 2 hours results in less alcohol consumed and absorbed than 2-3 glasses of a cocktail mixed with hard liquor.

Given these simple facts, suggestions that a mixed drink such as a 4 oz. martini made of 80-proof hard liquor is “the same” as a glass of beer with 4.6 Alcohol By Volume can be easily dismissed as untrue. There are major differences between beer, wine and hard liquor — both in what they are made of and how they are used — and they deserve separate tax and regulatory treatment.

Beer is the moderate choice. Beer is made of wholesome ingredients, such as barley, hops, yeast and local water. Once you get to know your drink, you will know that beer is the right choice.

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