0001| SENATE BILL 4 | 0002| 43RD LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - SECOND SESSION, 1998 | 0003| INTRODUCED BY | 0004| CARLOS R. CISNEROS | 0005| | 0006| | 0007| | 0008| FOR THE REVENUE STABILIZATION AND TAX POLICY COMMITTEE | 0009| | 0010| AN ACT | 0011| RELATING TO TAXATION; AMENDING THE LIQUOR EXCISE TAX ACT TO | 0012| EXPAND THE DEFINITION OF MICROBREWER AND CHANGE THE TAX ON | 0013| BEER MANUFACTURED OR PRODUCED BY A MICROBREWER AND SOLD IN NEW | 0014| MEXICO. | 0015| | 0016| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO: | 0017| Section 1. Section 7-17-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1966, | 0018| Chapter 49, Section 2, as amended) is amended to read: | 0019| "7-17-2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Liquor Excise Tax | 0020| Act: | 0021| A. "alcoholic beverages" means distilled or | 0022| rectified spirits, potable alcohol, brandy, whiskey, rum, gin | 0023| and aromatic bitters or any similar alcoholic beverage, | 0024| including blended or fermented beverages, dilutions or | 0025| mixtures of one or more of the foregoing containing more than | - 1 - 0001| one-half of one percent alcohol, but excluding medicinal | 0002| bitters: | 0003| (1) "spirituous liquors" means alcoholic | 0004| beverages, except fermented beverages such as wine, beer, | 0005| cider and ale; | 0006| (2) "beer" means any alcoholic beverage | 0007| obtained by the fermentation of any infusion or decoction of | 0008| barley, malt and hops or other cereals in water and includes | 0009| porter, beer, ale and stout; | 0010| (3) "cider" means an alcoholic beverage made | 0011| from the normal alcoholic fermentation of the juice of sound, | 0012| ripe apples that contains not less than one-half of one | 0013| percent of alcohol by volume and not more than seven percent | 0014| of alcohol by volume; | 0015| (4) "fortified wine" means wine containing | 0016| more than fourteen percent alcohol by volume when bottled or | 0017| packaged by the manufacturer, but does not include: | 0018| (a) wine that is sealed or capped by | 0019| cork closure and aged two years or more; | 0020| (b) wine that contains more than | 0021| fourteen percent alcohol by volume solely as a result of the | 0022| natural fermentation process and has not been produced with | 0023| the addition of wine spirits, brandy or alcohol; or | 0024| (c) vermouth and sherry; and | 0025| (5) "wine" includes the words "fruit juices" | - 2 - 0001| and means alcoholic beverages, other than cider, obtained by | 0002| the fermentation of the natural sugar contained in fruit or | 0003| other agricultural products, with or without the addition of | 0004| sugar or other products, that do not contain less than one- | 0005| half of one percent nor more than twenty-one percent alcohol | 0006| by volume; | 0007| B. "department" means the taxation and revenue | 0008| department, the secretary of taxation and revenue or any | 0009| employee of the department exercising authority lawfully | 0010| delegated to that employee by the secretary; | 0011| C. "microbrewer" means any person who produces | 0012| fewer than ~~[five]~~ sixty thousand barrels of beer in a | 0013| year; | 0014| D. "person" means any individual, estate, trust, | 0015| receiver, cooperative association, club, corporation, company, | 0016| firm, partnership, joint venture, syndicate or other | 0017| association; "person" also means, to the extent permitted by | 0018| law, any federal, state or other governmental unit or | 0019| subdivision or agency, department or instrumentality thereof; | 0020| E. "small winer or winegrower" means any person | 0021| who produces fewer than three hundred seventy-five thousand | 0022| liters of wine in a year; and | 0023| F. "wholesaler" means any person holding a license | 0024| issued under Section 60-6A-1 NMSA 1978 or any person selling | 0025| alcoholic beverages that were not purchased from a person | - 3 - 0001| holding a license issued under Section 60-6A-1 NMSA 1978." | 0002| Section 2. Section 7-17-5 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1993, | 0003| Chapter 65, Section 8, as amended) is amended to read: | 0004| "7-17-5. IMPOSITION AND RATE OF LIQUOR EXCISE TAX.-- | 0005| There is imposed on any wholesaler who sells alcoholic | 0006| beverages on which the tax imposed by this section has not | 0007| been paid an excise tax, to be referred to as the "liquor | 0008| excise tax", at the following rates on alcoholic beverages | 0009| sold: | 0010| A. on spirituous liquors, one dollar sixty cents | 0011| ($1.60) per liter; | 0012| B. on beer, except as provided in Subsection E of | 0013| this section, forty-one cents ($.41) per gallon; | 0014| C. on wine, except as provided in Subsections D | 0015| and F of this section, forty-five cents ($.45) per liter; | 0016| D. on fortified wine, one dollar fifty cents | 0017| ($1.50) per liter; | 0018| E. on beer manufactured or produced by a | 0019| microbrewer and sold in this state, provided that proof is | 0020| furnished to the department that the beer was manufactured or | 0021| produced by a microbrewer ~~[twenty-five cents ($.25) per~~ | 0022| ~~gallon]~~ eight cents ($.08) per gallon on the first thirty | 0023| thousand barrels and sixteen cents ($.16) per gallon on all | 0024| barrels sold over thirty thousand but less than sixty | 0025| thousand; | - 4 - 0001| F. on wine manufactured or produced by a small | 0002| winer or winegrower and sold in this state, provided that | 0003| proof is furnished to the department that the wine was | 0004| manufactured or produced by a small winer or winegrower, ten | 0005| cents ($.10) per liter on the first eighty thousand liters | 0006| sold and twenty cents ($.20) per liter on all liters sold over | 0007| eighty thousand liters but less than three hundred seventy- | 0008| five thousand liters; and | 0009| G. on cider, forty-one cents ($.41) per gallon." | 0010| Section 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the | 0011| provisions of this act is July 1, 1998. | 0012| |