Free the Hops

Free the Hops/Alabamians for Specialty Beer is a grassroots lobbying organization founded to overturn Alabama laws, enacted shortly after prohibition, which limit the alcohol content of beer sold in the state to 6% by volume and prohibit the sale of beer in containers larger than 16 ounces. According to the group, 96 of the 100 highest-rated beers at BeerAdvocate.com are currently prohibited in Alabama by these laws.

Free the Hops was founded by Danner Kline in 2005 in imitation of similar lobbying efforts which have had success in Georgia and North and South Carolina. Kline was interviewed for a segment on Comedy Central's The Daily Show which aired on October 18, 2005.

The group currently has more than 750 paid members and distributes its newsletter to 1,400 subscribers. Local chapters have been started in Auburn, Huntsville, Mobile, Montgomery and Tuscaloosa. Stuart Carter took over the presidency from Kline in December 2007.

Bills introduced in the 2006 legislative session never made it to the floor for a vote, having been held up in committee until the session ended. The 2007 senate bill suffered the same fate, while the house bill did come to the floor, but did not receive the 60% of votes needed for passage in advance of the budget bill. The 2008 bill, a local measure sponsored by Oliver Robinson, died in committee. The 2009 bill raising the ABV limit from 6% to 13.9% passed both houses and awaits the signature of Governor Bob Riley to become law.

Opposition to the 2007 and 2008 bills from Birmingham Budweiser vice-president Pat Lynch prompted Free the Hops to call for a boycott of the distributor's products beginning on January 23, 2008. The company later became a contributor to Free the Hops.

Free the Hops has hosted the Magic City Brewfest since 2007 at Sloss Furnaces.

Legislation

2007 Legislative Session

• House Bill HB195, a house bill to raise the statewide ABV limit to 14.9%, sponsored by Rep. Thomas Jackson. No vote.
• House Bill HB728, a house bill to raise the ABV limit in Jefferson County to 14.9%, sponsored by Rep. Oliver Robinson. No vote.
• House Bill HB851, a house bill to raise the ABV limit in Mobile County to 14.9%, sponsored by Rep. James Buskey. No vote.
• State Bill SB211, a senate bill to raise the statewide ABV limit to 14.9%, sponsored by Senators Griffith, Byrne, French, Lindsey, Singleton, and Penn. No vote.
• State Bill SB320 and State Bill SB352, senate bills to raise the ABV limit in Baldwin County to 14.9%, sponsored by Senator W.H. "Pat" Lindsey. No votes.
• State Bill SB328, a senate bill to raise the ABV limit in Mobile County to 14.9%, sponsored by Senator W.H. "Pat" Lindsey. No vote.
• State Bill SB418, a senate bill to raise the ABV limit in Jefferson County to 14.9%, sponsored by Senator Rodger Smitherman. No vote.

2008 Legislative Session

• House Bill HB53, house bill to raise the ABV limit in Jefferson County to 14.9%, sponsored by Rep. Oliver Robinson. The bill died "Pending Committee Action in House of Origin".

2009 Legislative Session

• House Bill HB373, "to amend Section 28-3-1, Code of Alabama 1975, relating to certain definitions for the sale and licensing of alcoholic beverages, to further define the term "beer" for ABC licensing purposes, to include malt beverages with a higher alcohol content", sponsored by Rep. Jackson. The bill passed by a 49-37 in the house on March 3. The House bill was substitute for the Senate version and passed the that body's Budget Isolation Resolution on April 28. An amendment brought forward by Senator Ben Brooks was attached to prohibit sales at convenience stores. Under the threat of a filibuster from Senator Hank Erwin, the bill was placed on a special order calendar and passed by a 19-9 vote on May 14 while Erwin was outside the chamber. After the Senate passed the bill with an amendment, the House vote to approve the changes. Governor Riley signed it into law on May 22.

References

• "Free The Hops." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 26 Jan 2008, 18:42 UTC. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 1 Feb 2008 [1].
• Crowe, Christina (August 25, 2005). "Freedom to Drink Tasty Brews". Black & White
• Spencer, Thomas (February 1, 2008) "Free the Hops calls for Budweiser boycott." Birmingham News
• "Bill OK'ing stronger beer clears Alabama Legislature." (May 14, 2009) Birmingham News

External links

• Free The Hops website