CHEERS! CALIFORNIANS PAY LOWER TAXES ON ALCOHOL THAN AVERAGE, STUDY FINDS

Californians can consider themselves lucky: their state charges less in taxes than the national average for import taxes on beer, wine and liquor

By Daniel Wheaton

The San Diego Union-Tribune
March 24, 2016

Californians can consider themselves lucky: their state charges less in taxes than the national average for import taxes on beer, wine and liquor.

A report from the Tax Foundation breaks down excise taxes by state. These are paid by the person or business that buys the alcohol from the manufacturer, and are often passed down to the consumer. California's rate is 20 cents per gallon of beer. That amounts to 2.5 cents for each pint. On top of that however, is a federal tax of 58 cents per gallon of beer, or 7 cents per pint.

As with nearly every other good, taxes vary based on where you’re purchasing them. Regionally, there is significant variation in how much states tax beer: The South has the highest beer taxes; in Wyoming, it’s barely anything at all.

Those geographic trends don’t translate to other types of liquor, though. For wine, Kentucky pays the most with $3.30 per gallon, while Louisiana only pays 11 cents. California booze importers pay a small share as well, only 20 cents per gallon, or about 4 cents per 750 ml bottle. Some state governments control the sale of alcohol, which then can alter the tax even further.

The harder the liquor, the more it costs to buy from a manufacturer, with a federal tax of $13.50 per proof per gallon. The highest state tax is in Washington, where you’ll pay $33.54 per gallon of spirits. So importers would pay $8.86 of state tax for each liter of whiskey. The amount of tax can vary by the alcohol content; for the map above, the Tax Foundation used an ABV of 40%.

In California, it’s about one-tenth that amount, with $3.30 per gallon. Or 80 cents tacked on to that whiskey.

Cheers!

EDITORS NOTE: When California’s Democratic state legislators read this, they are liable to go ape and correct this oversight quickly. How? By raising those taxes well above the national average.