As of today’s writing, the options to ship alcohol legally are limited. And one of those limitations is the lack of being able to ship alcohol through the United States Postal Service. Currently, shipping alcohol through the USPS would be considered illegal and the only available shipping options are limited to private carriers or UPS/ FedEx.
However, a bill currently sits with Congress that would change all of this. The “United States Postal Service Shipping Equity Act” (H.R.3287) currently sits with the Oversight and Reform Committee in the U.S. House Of Representatives. The bill would “authorize the mailing of alcoholic beverages by certain entities (including a winery, brewery, beverage distilled spirits plant, or other wholesaler, distributer, importer, or retailer of alcoholic beverages) in accordance with the delivery requirements otherwise applicable to a privately carried shipment.”
The bill goes on to say that “this would apply to an entity that has registered with, obtained a permit from, or obtained approval of an application from the Department of the Treasury.”
The passing of this bill would allow your local brewery to be provided with an additional option in an effort to get their beer in your hands directly. Something that many breweries in PA have taken advantage of in recent years.
If you would like to support the passing of this bill, you can do so here. A special link has been created to allow you to message your representatives directly to ask them to push to make this bill into law. You can message your representative here.
