Georgia’s beer industry is thriving. Craft brewers across our state produced more than 585,000 barrels of beer in 2024, ranking 11th nationally in craft malt beverage production. From small-town producers to well-known brands, breweries are investing, expanding and creating jobs in communities across Georgia.
Brewers and distributors have grown Georgia’s beer industry together. Independent wholesalers invest in brands, expand their reach and help move local products from production facilities to restaurants, bars and store shelves statewide. That partnership has helped turn small breweries into regional success stories.
That growth has occurred within Georgia’s three-tier system, which has provided stability and accountability for nearly 90 years. As legislators evaluate Senate Bill 456 and the new exceptions it proposes, the central question is straightforward: does this strengthen Georgia’s system or erode it? The evidence points clearly to the latter.
Georgia separates manufacturing, distribution and retail because alcohol is not an ordinary consumer product — it is an intoxicating beverage that merits careful regulation. The state’s framework protects public safety, ensures taxes are properly collected and maintains fair competition for businesses of all sizes.
Today, the three-tier system supports a broad retail marketplace. Georgia has more than 21,000 active retail alcohol licenses, including package stores, restaurants, hotels and brewpubs. Authorized distributors deliver to these businesses statewide, manage compliance, maintain chain of custody and ensure taxes are properly remitted.
That process generates consistent revenue. According to the Georgia Department of Revenue, malt beverage excise tax collections totaled $92.2 million in fiscal year 2024. Collections have remained stable in recent years, reflecting a predictable revenue stream that supports state and local priorities. These taxes are collected by wholesalers at delivery and remitted directly to the state, providing transparency and accountability. In states where producers collect the taxes themselves, revenues often decline.
SB 456 would create new exceptions to this model. The bill would define a “small brewer” as a brewer or brewpub whose sales to a wholesaler do not exceed 15 percent of that wholesaler’s total annual sales and would permit those brewers to sell up to 1,000 barrels per year directly to licensed retailers within their county. The legislation also removes the current daily limit of 288 ounces per individual for off-premise purchases from brewery taprooms and authorizes brewery-to-brewery sales, shipments and deliveries among licensed brewers and brewpubs.
Individually, these provisions are designed to sound modest. But for every “common sense” example offered by bill proponents, the real-world implications become more problematic. Moving a single keg across the street may sound harmless. But what happens when a Fulton County brewer without trucks, drivers or insurance is responsible for moving 500 kegs across town to State Farm Arena? Or when 5-10 brewers each deliver five kegs a week to the same small downtown Savannah bar that lacks the staff to manage multiple visits?
Under practical scrutiny, the arguments for the bill begin to unravel. SB 456 represents another step toward shifting more alcohol outside the established wholesale channel that ensures compliance, safety, tax collection and consistent oversight.
Retailers depend on a streamlined delivery network. Wholesalers deliver multiple brands in single stops, manage inventory and resolve compliance issues quickly. Expanding carve-outs risks replacing that efficiency with fragmented distribution and added administrative burdens for both retailers and regulators. And it is unlikely that wholesalers will deliver product for brewers in counties where they choose to deliver for themselves.
Georgia’s three-tier system is not anti-craft brewery. It is pro-competition, pro-consumer and pro-public safety. It has allowed national brands, local breweries, family-owned retailers and independent distributors to coexist and thrive within a balanced marketplace. Consumers benefit from access to new products, competitive pricing and confidence in the safety and quality of what they purchase.
The reality is that not every brewery will survive in a competitive market. But Georgia should not rewrite long-standing alcohol policy every time one business struggles. Durable regulatory frameworks are built for the long term, not short-term market pressures.
Senate Bill 456 may appear simple on its face, but simple solutions often fall short in highly regulated industries. That is the case here. SB 456 weakens Georgia’s regulatory system by expanding self-distribution in ways that complicate state oversight, create operational challenges for retailers, increase compliance risks and could ultimately raise costs for Georgia consumers.
Georgia’s proven system works best when breweries focus on making great beer, wholesalers ensure it is delivered safely and efficiently statewide, and retailers focus on serving customers responsibly. While regulations have evolved over time, this balanced approach has delivered consistent results. We should be cautious about legislation that risks undermining all three parts of this proven system.