US appeals court declares 158-year-old home distilling ban unconstitutional
By Jonathan Stempel
April 10 (Reuters) – A U.S. appeals court on Friday declared a nearly 158-year-old federal ban on home distilling unconstitutional, calling it an unnecessary and improper means for Congress to exercise its taxing power.
The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans ruled in favor of the nonprofit Hobby Distillers Association and four of its 1,300 members.
They argued that people should be free to distill spirits at home, whether as a hobby or for personal consumption, including creating an apple pie-vodka recipe.
Prohibition was part of a law passed in July 1868 during Reconstruction, in part to crack down on liquor tax evasion, punishing violators with up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
Circuit Judge Edith Hollan Jones, writing for the three-judge panel, said that unlike laws regulating the production and labeling of distilled spirits for which the government can collect taxes, the ban actually reduces tax revenue by preventing distilling in the first place.
He also said that under the government’s logic, Congress could criminalize almost any domestic activity that could escape the attention of tax collectors, including remote work and home-based businesses.
“Without any limiting principle, the government’s theory would violate this court’s obligation to carefully read the Constitution to avoid creating a blanket federal authority akin to a police force,” Jones wrote.
The U.S. Department of Justice had no immediate comment. Another defendant, the Treasury Department’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Devin Watkins, an attorney representing the Hobby Spirits Association, said in an interview that the ruling was “an important decision about the limits of federal power.”
Andrew Grossman, who argued the nonprofit’s appeal, called the ruling “an important victory for individual liberty” that allowed plaintiffs to “pursue their passions to distill quality beverages at home.”
“I look forward to sampling their output,” he said.
The decision affirmed a July 2024 decision by U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman in Fort Worth, Texas. He suspended his decision so the government could appeal.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
