A federal judge in Texas has ruled that a ban on distilling alcohol at home for personal consumption is unconstitutional.
The Hobby Distillers Association sued the government arguing the 156-year-old ban violated the U.S. Constitution’s Commerce Clause and exceeded Congress’s taxing power.
U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman agreed with the association’s lawyers and issued a permanent injunction barring the enforcement of the ban against its members.
However, the decision was stayed for 14 days to allow the government to appeal.
The lawsuit was filed by the Hobby Distillers Association and four of its members against the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) and the Department of Justice. The association argued that the government cannot regulate activities conducted within private homes.
The Department of Justice defended the law as a way to protect tax revenue from distilled spirits. However, Judge Pittman ruled that the ban did not raise revenue and therefore was not a valid exercise of Congress’s taxing power.
He also said the ban could not be justified under the Commerce Clause because it did not regulate interstate commerce in a comprehensive way.
The case is Hobby Distillers Association v. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.
