In a recent investigation by Spotlight PA, it was found that the Pennsylvania Craft Beer grant program has turned out to be smoke and mirrors. A program that launched in 2016 by the Pennsylvania liquor board in an effort to increase the engagement and awareness of craft beer in the state. Since its inception is has approved 74 grants totaling just over $5 million for various projects but has failed to live up to that number.
Spotlight PA found that “nearly a fifth of the total dollars awarded were never paid out by the liquor control board. In many cases, the agency reimbursed people tens of thousands of dollars less than the grant total they were originally awarded.”
One of the biggest problems with the grant program was the long delays in payments. Breweries that were awarded grants often had to wait months or even years to receive the money. This caused significant financial hardship for some breweries, as they had to front the cost of the projects that the grants were supposed to fund.
In addition to the delays in payments, the grant program also had strict and inflexible benchmarks. Breweries had to meet these benchmarks in order to receive the full amount of their grant funding. However, many breweries found the benchmarks to be unrealistic or unattainable. This led to some breweries having to return grant money that they had already received.
The problems with the grant program have had a negative impact on Pennsylvania’s brewing industry. Some breweries have had to delay or cancel expansion plans due to the lack of funding. Others have had to lay off employees or cut back on production.
Speaking to Spotlight PA, Mark Brault of Deer Creek Malt shared his experience. Saying how Deer Creek had been awarded a $149,950 grant to promote Pennsylvania beer. And since then, he said, it has been a nightmare. In the time since the money was awarded, the liquor control board has paid Brault only about $40,000, according to the agency’s records. Brault said the board has dug in its heels and refused to pay any more.
He said the board rejected multiple expenses he submitted for the project, saying they did not meet the program’s guidelines. When he tried to correct problems, he said he felt like the agency kept changing the rules.
Brault went on to share how he has had to hire lawyers to try to recoup more money but has not been successful. “This has put tremendous strain on our business,” he said. “I’ve had to lay some people off” he went on to share.
As of this writing the grant program is still published online and an email has been set up to apply for the program. But there is no telling what the increased outcry of pain from past grant winners will do for the future of the program.
