HCSHB2621--OZARKHIGHLANDSSPIRITS
SPONSOR: Grier
COMMITTEEACTION:Voted"DoPasswithHCS"bytheStanding
CommitteeonGeneralLawsbyavoteof11to0.
ThefollowingisasummaryoftheHouseCommitteeSubstituteforHB
2621.
Thisbillprovidesconditionsforspiritstoqualifyandbelabeled
forsaleinMissourias"OzarkHighlands"spirits. Foraged
products,theseconditionsinclude:
(1)Theproductmustbemashed,fermented,distilled,aged,and
bottledintheOzarkHighlandsregion;
(2)TheproductmustbeagedinbarrelsmanufacturedinMissouri;
(3)Thewatersourcemustbeuntreatedornaturalfromnatural
springsordeepwellsintheOzarksHighlands,andwithout
chlorinationoraddedchemicalssuchasfluoride;and
(4)Theminimumageofwhiskeyisfouryears.
Forunagedproducts,suchasginorvodka,theseconditions
include:
(1)Theproductmustbemashed,fermented,distilled,andbottled
intheOzarkHighlandsregion;and
(2)Thewatersourcemustbeuntreatedornaturalfromnatural
springsordeepwellsintheOzarksHighlands,andwithout
chlorinationoraddedchemicalssuchasfluoride.
Theproductmustbefurthercertified,bysealorothermeans,by
theOzarkHighlandDistillersGuild.Forpurposesofthisbill,
theDepartmentofNaturalResourcesshallproduceandpublishan
officialmapofthe"OzarkHighlands"region.
Thefollowingisasummaryofthepublictestimonyfromthe
committeehearing. Thetestimonywasbasedontheintroduced
versionofthebill.
PROPONENTS: SupporterssaythatrecognizingtheOzarkHighlands
regionanddistinguishing spiritsproducedintheregionwill
encourageindustryandeconomicdevelopmentwithinthestate.The
uniquequalitiesoftheregion,includinghigherwaterqualityfor
distillingduetogeographicfeatures,resultinhigherquality spirits. Therearemanydistillerscurrentlyintheregion.This
billproposesacomprehensiveandinclusivedesignationthatwill
beofbenefittotheregionasawhole.
TestifyingforthebillwereRepresentative Grier;ArnieC.AC
Dienoff;andDemetriusCain.
OPPONENTS: Therewasnooppositionvoicedtothecommittee.
Writtentestimonyhasbeensubmittedforthisbill.Thefull
writtentestimonycanbefoundunderTestimonyonthebillpageon
theHousewebsite.