Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/929459
16 WINES&VINES February 2018 WINE INDUSTRY NEWS D allas, Ore.—A moratorium on new rule- making isn't uncommon when the White House welcomes a new resident. But a year after Donald Trump took his seat in the Oval Office, rule-making remains limited as a result of one of the first executive orders the president signed. On Jan. 30, 2017, Trump pledged to cut two regulations for every rule made. In mid- December, he was touting the fact he had suc- cessfully cut 22 regulations for every one implemented, stalling more than 1,500 rule- making procedures in the process. Several proposals at the Alcohol and To- bacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) have been caught in the standstill, including 18 related to the establishment or amendment of Ameri- can Viticultural Areas (AVAs). The oldest peti- tion stuck in process was accepted as perfected in May 2015. The limits on rule-making compound delays from an ongoing shortage of staff at the TTB. Kevin Pogue, a geologist at Whitman Col- lege in Walla Walla, filed a petition for the proposed White Bluffs AVA in Franklin County, Wash., in November and, in January 2017, one for a Candy Mountain AVA in Benton County, Wash. Both are ready for public comment, once rule-making resumes. "I detected no slowing of the process with regard to getting the petition 'perfected'— being declared eligible for rule-making," he told Wines & Vines. Nevertheless, soil scientist Alan Busacca of Vinitas Consultants LLC in Bingen, Wash., ex- pects his petition for the Royal Slope to be at least another year in process, even if rule- making began in earnest today. And that's frus- trating—not only for him, but for the wine industry as a whole. "The idea that there's just been a year when all this work that supposedly needed to get done has been stalled is just absurd," he said. However, the chances are good for a break- through in 2018; the Petaluma Gap AVA was approved and became official Jan. 8, 2018, the first AVA established since Appalachian High Country in October 2016. The approval came as a surprise for Florent Merlier, winemaker at Van Duzer Vineyards in Dallas, Ore., as petitions are usually pro- cessed in the order accepted, and Petaluma Gap leapfrogged over seven other petitions such as the Van Duzer Corridor AVA to gain approval. Tom Hogue, congressional and media af- fairs liaison with the TTB, confirmed the prog- ress but he couldn't give a timeline for when individual petitions would receive approval. "We've seen rule-making on AVAs going forward, and based on that I have every hope of more AVA rule-making," he told Wines & Vines. "We want to get them there." —Peter Mitham U.S. Wineries Decry Federal Rule-Making Slowdown QST offers its clients……. Professionally fabricated stainless tanks 35 years of tank fabrication experience Performance & reliability guarantees Custom designs & modern features Quick & competitive tank project pricing On site tank repairs & modifications Special application tanks of all sizes "In stock tanks" from 500 to 10,000 gallons 510 Caletti Ave. Windsor, Ca. 95492 Phone 707-837-2721 or Toll-Free 877-598-0672 www.qualitystainless.com Company Website winetanks@aol.com email contact/sales info Custom Fabricated Tanks for the perfect size & fit… or Ready to Ship "Stock Tanks" Either way QST is ready to assist our clients! Call QST today for information or pricing! QUALITY STAINLESS TANKS "It affects rule-making on a number of key issues as well as label approvals and AVA petitions." —Tom Danowski, Oregon Wine Board and Oregon Winegrowers Association