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The South Dakota Craft Brewers Guild is happy to report that Governor Dennis Daugaard signed SB 173 into law on March 22, 2018. This bill will allow South Dakota craft brewers to produce up to 30,000 barrels annually and introduces self-distribution to the state for the first time (up to 1,500 bbl/yr) It also enables the transfer of product between offsite manufacturing and retail locations and addresses several outdated alcohol statutes in the Mt. Rushmore State. Previously, self-distribution of any kind was prohibited and brewers were capped at 5,000 barrels of production in order to maintain tap-room licenses.

These changes enable SD craft brewers to grow production in a state that has ranked 51st in annual barrels and aims to reduce the barrier of entry for small producers. The bill was a compromise between industry members across tiers in the state. The South Dakota Craft Brewers Guild worked with the Governor’s office over the last year to draft this legislation and spent tireless hours lobbying before eventually reaching a favorable compromise with the state’s wholesalers to pass a bill that benefits the industry as a whole.