ABC Renewals

To all Wine Road wineries –

This came my way today, via the Family Winemakers – YOU may qualify.

Attention all California Wineries

I spoke with ABC today and they told me that they are only getting about ½ of the wineries eligible for the renewal fee waiver applying. Below is the information from the Governor’s press release. If you have a renewal coming up, and feel you are eligible, ABC wants you to apply.

Governor Gavin Newsom has signed a relief package that authorizes ABC to waive license renewal fees for eligible licensees. Review the Requirements and Guidelines for detailed information. The criteria for fee waivers is as follows:

1. The license type shall be one of the following: 02[1], 23, duplicate 23, 40, 41, 42, 47, duplicate 47, 48, duplicate 48, 49, duplicate 49, 50, 51, 52, 57, duplicate 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 64, 68, 69, 71, duplicate 71, 72, duplicate 72, 74, 75, duplicate 75, 76, duplicate 76, 77, 78, duplicate 78, 83, 86, 87, duplicate 87, 99; and

2. The license shall have been active during the period from March 1, 2020, through December 31, 2020, inclusive; and

3. The licensed premises’ primary operation was disrupted by health and safety restrictions imposed in response to the COVID-19 Pandemic;

4. For 02 licensees only: In addition to the above criteria, I certify that under the above license number, produced less than 100,000 gallons of wine in fiscal year 2020-2021, and that I will submit the accurate production volume on my winegrowers annual report.

Many of my Family Winemakers of California members have applied for the fee waiver and have gotten approved. This is a 2 year program so if you missed it this year you can apply next year at renewal.

Pete Downs
President
Family Winemakers of California