Recognizing Craft Spirits Week 2020

Floor Speech

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Mr. WELCH. Madam Speaker, I rise today during Craft Spirits Week to show my support for the more than 2,000 craft distilleries across the United States that support our vibrant tourism and hospitality industries, countless jobs, local farmers and manufacturers, and the larger economy. Vermont is home to a few of these companies and they are a wonderful addition to our vibrant tourism economy.

Recent events surrounding COVID-19 have put an unprecedented burden on our craft distillers. According to a survey conducted by the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States and American Distilling Institute, approximately 43 percent of distillery employees have been let go or furloughed since the start of the COVID-19 crisis, bringing the average number of a respondent's employees from 14 down to 8. On average, distilleries reported a 64 percent sales decline. Two-thirds of respondents did not believe they will be able to sustain their businesses for more than 6 months, while almost half did not anticipate being able to sustain their businesses for more than 3 months.

Many were forced to close their doors to the public, but instead of closing shop entirely, craft distillers in every single state altered their business plans to help address the nationwide shortage of hand sanitizer. In the greatest time of need, craft distillers showed up for their fellow Americans without hesitation with many even donating their products to first responders. In Vermont, our distilleries pivoted quickly when the COVID-19 pandemic hit and even provided sanitizer to businesses and domestic violence shelters.

The economic hardships caused by this pandemic have been immediate and will last well beyond the end of COVID. The losses they have suffered over the last couple of months can never be fully recouped. That is why we need to come together to support these local businesses.

These businesses don't operate in a vacuum, but in an ecosystem that support dozens of other businesses. The livelihoods of farmers, glass bottle makers, truck drivers, warehouse workers, and countless others connected to the hospitality and tourism industries are also compromised by the challenges confronting the distilled spirits industry. With distilleries located in every state in the nation, this should cause great concern for each member of Congress.

I urge all my colleagues to take time to visit with and talk to the distillers in their districts to show their support for these small businesses during Craft Spirits Week. Distillers, like other businesses, need our support during this time. I look forward to working with my colleagues as well to support distillers and those in the hospitality sector who have been significantly impacted by the COVID-19 crisis.

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