By: Carona S.B. No. 950
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to requiring certain alcoholic beverage permittees to be
the primary American source of supply for certain alcoholic
beverages.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 37.10, Alcoholic Beverage Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 37.10. RESTRICTION AS TO SOURCE OF SUPPLY. (a) No
holder of a nonresident seller's permit may solicit, accept, or
fill an order for distilled spirits or wine from a holder of any
type of wholesaler's or winery permit unless the nonresident seller
is the primary American source of supply for the brand of distilled
spirits or wine that is ordered.
(b) In this section, "primary American source of supply"
means the distiller, the producer, the owner of the commodity at the
time it becomes a marketable product, the bottler, or the exclusive
agent of any of those. To be the "primary American source of
supply" the nonresident seller must be the first source, that is,
the manufacturer or the source closest to the manufacturer, in the
channel of commerce from whom the product can be secured by Texas
[American] wholesalers and Texas wineries. Except as provided by
Subsection (c), a product may have only one primary American source
of supply to Texas.
(c) A product may have more than one primary American source
of supply to Texas if the product is a wine that is bottled or
produced outside of the United States.
SECTION 2. Subsections (a) and (d), Section 101.671,
Alcoholic Beverage Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) Before an authorized permittee may ship distilled
spirits or wine into the state or sell distilled spirits or wine
within the state, the permittee must register the distilled spirits
or wine with the commission and provide proof that the permittee is
the primary American source of supply for purposes of Section
37.10. Except for rare or vintage wine that is acquired at auction
and for which no certificate is available, the [The] registration
application must include a certificate of label approval issued by
the United States Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau for the
product. Rare or vintage wine purchased at auction and registered
by the commission under this subsection must comply with all other
provisions of this code, including provisions regarding the sale,
purchase, importation, and distribution of that wine.
(d) The commission by rule may [shall] establish procedures
for accepting:
(1) federal certificates of label approval for
registration under this section; and
(2) proof, such as a letter of authorization, that a
permittee is the primary American source of supply for purposes of
Section 37.10.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.