[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 27, Volume 1]
[Revised as of January 1, 2008]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 27CFR13.26]

[Page 307]
 
            TITLE 27--ALCOHOL, TOBACCO PRODUCTS AND FIREARMS
 
 CHAPTER I--ALCOHOL AND TOBACCO TAX AND TRADE BUREAU, DEPARTMENT OF THE 
                                TREASURY
 
PART 13_LABELING PROCEEDINGS--Table of Contents
 
                         Subpart C_Applications
 
Sec.  13.26  Decision after appeal of qualification or denial.

    (a) Decision. After considering any written arguments or evidence 
presented by the applicant, the appropriate TTB officer must issue a 
written decision to the applicant. If the decision is that the qualified 
approval or denial should stand, a copy of the application, marked 
``appeal denied,'' must be returned to the applicant with an explanation 
of the decision and the specific laws or regulations relied upon in 
qualifying or denying the application. If the decision is that the 
certificate of label approval, certificate of exemption from label 
approval, or distinctive liquor bottle application should be approved 
without qualification, the applicant should resubmit TTB Form 5100.31 
and the certificate will be issued.
    (b) Time limits for decision. Within 90 days of receipt of an 
appeal, the appropriate TTB officer must notify the appellant whether 
the appeal has been granted or denied. If an applicant requests an 
informal conference as part of an appeal, as authorized in Sec.  13.71, 
the 90-day period will begin 10 days after the date of the conference to 
allow for consideration of any written arguments, facts or evidence 
submitted after the conference. The appropriate TTB officer may extend 
this period of time once by an additional 90 days if he or she finds 
that unusual circumstances require additional time to consider the 
issues presented by an appeal. If the appropriate TTB officer extends 
the period, he or she must notify the applicant by letter, briefly 
explaining the issues presented by the label. If the appellant receives 
no decision from the appropriate TTB officer within the time periods set 
forth in this paragraph, the appellant may appeal as provided in Sec.  
13.27.
    (c) Judicial review. Prior to applying to the Federal courts for 
review, an applicant must first exhaust his or her administrative 
remedies, including the appeal rights set forth in this section and 
Sec.  13.27.