Beer Down, Liquor Up

Experts in the adult beverage industry say more people in Utah are opting for more wine and spirits and putting aside they're bottles and cans of beer.
When the Legislature increased the tax on beer by $1.80 to $12.80 for each 31-gallon barrel in 2003, the state’s revenue from beer sales taxes began dropping. In 2003, the state earned more than $10.3 million in beer taxes. By 2005, it dropped to $8.9 million, according to the Utah Tax Commission. Over the same span, the state’s 13 percent sales tax on wine and liquor increased revenues from $15.7 million to $18.1 million. The tax increase on beer came at a time when beer sales nationwide showed little or no growth, according to the National Beer Wholesalers Association. Utah has one of the highest beer taxes in the nation. Utah charges 41 cents in taxes per gallon of beer. By comparison, Wyoming charges 2 cents per gallon. So basically, they increased the beer tax so the state could incease it's revenue and the exact opposite has happened. Thanks for nut'n.