New and Revised Brewery Forms
To: Brewers And Others Involved In The Beer Industry
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) collects information
from the brewing industry using notice, bond, application, return,
record, and report forms. When any Government agency uses forms
to collect information from the public, the Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) must approve the use of the forms. OMB's approval
process involves assessing the appropriateness of the information
requested and an estimate of the length of time it will take to
complete the forms. OMB's role is to ensure that Government agencies
do not require the public to submit unnecessary and inappropriate
information. The approval of forms obtained from OMB is effective
for a specific length of time, usually for several years. As part
of the renewal of the approval, the responsible Government agency
has an opportunity to update and enhance the form.
Since the four existing forms cited below were due for either periodic
review or approval by OMB, we took the opportunity to revise them
using plain language. This revision will make the forms clearer
and more user-friendly. The three new forms were also written using
plain language.
What is the purpose of this circular?
The purpose of this circular is to announce the availability of
the following new and revised beer forms and to provide information
concerning their use and filing.
ATF Form 5130.9--Brewer's Report of Operations
ATF Form 5130.10--Brewer's Notice
ATF Form 5130.22--Brewer's Bond
ATF Form 5130.23--Brewer's Bond Continuation Certificate
ATF Form 5130.25--Brewer's Collateral Bond (New)
ATF Form 5130.26--Brewpub Report of Operations (New)
ATF Form 5130.27--Brewer's Collateral Bond Continuation Certificate (New)
What are the benefits of plain language?
ATF recognizes the necessity to promote the creation of forms and
literature that are written using the ideals of plain language.
We recognize that ATF forms and instructions written in plain language
serve to reduce the number of hours spent by brewers and others
in completing the required forms. It is our goal to promote the
use of clear and straightforward language on forms and documents
that we create, which in turn will make completion of forms by the
brewer and review by ATF easier.
What are the Brewer's and Brewpub Reports of Operations?
All brewers must submit to ATF a periodic report summarizing operations
at the brewery. In reviewing this reporting requirement, we determined
that the report form should be easier for small brewers to prepare.
Small brewers who do not bottle or rack (keg) beer do not need to
report information about the transfer of beer in the brewery cellars
for bottling and racking operations. In addition, small brewers
generally conduct fewer other operations than large brewers. In
recognition of the limited scope of operations at brewpubs, we created
a new form, the Brewpub Report of Operations, ATF Form 5130.26,
which brewpubs may use in lieu of the existing ATF Form 5130.9.
You may use the new ATF Form 5130.26 if you produce not more than
5,000 barrels of beer annually and if you do not bottle or keg beer
for removal from your brewery. You must use the Brewer's Report
of Operations, ATF Form 5130.9, if you produce more than 5,000 barrels
of beer annually or if you produce less than 5,000 barrels of beer
annually but you package beer in bottles or kegs for removal from
the brewery. The size of your individual brewery is the factor in
determining which form you may use. For example, if you are a large
brewing company but operate a brewpub location producing less than
5,000 barrels of beer annually, then you may use the Brewpub Report
of Operations, ATF Form 5130.26, for that qualifying location.
What are the common changes to ATF Forms 5130.9, Brewer's Report
of Operations and 5130.26, Brewpub Report of Operations?
We have added new information to that required on existing ATF
Form 5130.9. This new information is also required on the new ATF
Form 5130.26.
The first change requires you to enter your Employer Identification
Number (EIN) on the form. The EIN number assists ATF National Revenue
Center (NRC) personnel in associating the report of operations form
with the corresponding excise tax returns. In conjunction with this
requirement, both report forms contain a new Part 2, Report Period
Tax Payments. In this new section, you must list certain information
about all Excise Tax Returns, ATF Form 5000.24, that you filed during
the period covered by the report. The tax return information assists
ATF personnel in auditing the excise tax returns and operational
reports.
A second change affects how you must report adjustments. If you
adjusted a previous tax return, ATF Form 5400.24 and that adjustment
affects the quantity of beer reported on a previous report of operations,
you must report the adjusted amount of beer on ATF Form 5130.9 or
5130.26. Separate lines are now provided for the reporting of adjustments
made for prior reporting periods. Use lines 35 and 36 on ATF From
5130.9 or lines 9 and 18 on ATF Form 5130.26 to report both increasing
and decreasing adjustments. Report adjustments using positive numbers
only. Do not interline adjustment quantities with current reporting
period quantities. You must continue to explain adjustments on ATF
Form 5130.9 or 5130.26 or on a separate attachment.
When do I file operations reports?
If you file the Brewpub Report of Operations, ATF Form 5130.26,
you may file for the quarterly reporting periods of January through
March, April through June, July through September, or October through
December. You must file quarterly reports no later than 15 days
after the end of the calendar quarter for which they are prepared.
If you file the Brewer's Report of Operations, ATF Form 5130.9,
you may file either monthly or quarterly, depending on your production.
If you operate a brewery producing not more than 10,000 barrels
of beer per year, you may file this report on a calendar quarter
basis as described above. If you produce more than 10,000 barrels
of beer per year, you must file ATF Form 5130.9 monthly. Monthly
reports must be filed no later than 15 days after the end of the
month for which they are filed. Revised instructions on both forms
require these reports of operations to be filed with the Chief of
ATF's National Revenue Center in Cincinnati, OH.
Are there other changes to ATF Form 5130.9, Brewer's Report
of Operations?
We have made only minor changes to the lines on part 1 on ATF Form
5130.9. Lines 15(a) and (b) are separated into new lines 14 and
15. Line 14 reports beer removed tax determined from the brewery.
Line 15 reports beer removed tax determined to a tavern on the brewery
premises. We have made minor changes in the wording of lines 1 through
34 in order to provide reporting information in plain language.
Part 1 of this form remains an accounting form where additions to
beer inventory, lines 1 through 12, equal removals and deletions
from beer inventory, lines 14 through 33.
What information is required on ATF Form 5130.26, Brewpub Report
of Operations?
This new form is for use by brewpubs. We require the reporting
of only limited information in part 1, and this part of the form
does not constitute an account balancing form. Thus, you need report
only quantities of beer produced, transferred, tax determined for
use at the tavern, and so forth. There are no separate cellar, bottling,
or racking accounts. We believe this simplifies the information
reported and will make this form easier for small brewers to use.
You may report quantities of beer on hand at the beginning and end
of the reporting period on ATF Form 5130.26 if you have beer at
the brewery that has not yet been tax determined.
You may report the voluntary destruction of beer tax determined
and removed to the tavern by showing the beer returned to the brewery,
line 4, and then destroyed at the brewery, line 13. We believe this
reporting format will simplify reporting of tax determined beer
on the tavern premises that you voluntarily destroy.
Were changes made to the Brewer's Notice, ATF Form 5130.10?
We have made substantial changes to ATF Form 5130.10. Many of the
changes result from us requiring you to enter information on the
form that in the past was submitted as a separate attachment to
the Brewer's Notice. Other changes reflect information required
by 27 CFR part 25 but never incorporated into the Brewer's Notice.
Addition of the requirement for this information on this form eliminates
the need for submission of several separate notices and variance
requests and places all brewery qualifying information together
on the Brewer's Notice.
Line 10 includes check boxes to indicate the type of brewery for
which the Brewer's Notice is filed. For a brewpub, you must provide
additional information on lines 16 and 17, and you must attach a
separate diagram of the brewpub. This information is required by
27 CFR section 25.25 but has never been included in the Brewer's
Notice.
You must now enter your brewery's EIN number on line 12 of the
Brewer's Notice. In order to assist ATF personnel in contacting
an applicant or an individual at the brewery, we now require a contact
person's name, telephone number, and e-mail address--if an Internet
address is available--on the Brewer's Notice. The contact person
must have signature authority or power of attorney for the brewery.
The Brewer's Notice contains check boxes at line 11 to indicate
the type of business structure and at line 13 to indicate the reason
the Brewer's Notice is being filed. New line 14 is a statement that
the brewer is or is not entitled to pay the reduced rate of tax
on beer. If you are a member of a controlled group of breweries
and are entitled to pay the reduced rate of tax, a listing of other
breweries in the controlled group of breweries is required. By incorporating
this information on the Brewer's Notice, you do not need to file
a separate notice each year with us as required by 27 CFR section
25.167. You must update this information on the Brewer's Notice
when changes occur that affect production amounts, the rate of tax
eligible to be paid, or the listing of other members of a controlled
group of breweries.
We have included the signature authority for corporate officers
on the Brewer's Notice at line 15. This is included as a convenience
for brewers and applicants who no longer need to include this information
as an attachment to the Brewer's Notice.
Line 18 lists additional documents that you must attach as part
of the Brewer's Notice. We have previously required brewers or applicants
to submit these documents, but they have not been specifically referenced
on the Brewer's Notice, ATF Form 5130.10, or in regulations in 27
CFR part 25.
The revised Brewer's Notice, ATF Form 5130.10, no longer requires
certain information previously required. The 24-hour brewer's business
day is no longer a required element, although you must continue
to inform us of the 24-hour period by which you intend to conduct
business and prepare records if you use a different 24-hour business
day. The Brewer's Notice no longer contains a reference to the submission
of statements of process. Although statements of process continue
to be required for the production of certain fermented beverages,
we no longer desire their submission with the Brewer's Notice to
the NRC. We now require you to submit statements of process (or
formulas) directly to our Alcohol Labeling and Formulation Division
in Washington, DC. We are currently addressing the submission of
these documents through a regulations change to 27 CFR part 25.
We have made the instructions to the Brewer's Notice clearer and
more explicit. We believe that clearer instructions enable applicants
and brewers to fill out this form more easily and accurately. These
instructions also include certain information from regulations identifying
the required corporate organizational documents found in 27 CFR
section 25.66.
Were changes made to bond forms?
We have revised all brewers' bond forms and have created two new
bond forms. The revised Brewer's Bond, ATF Form 5130.22, and the
Brewer's Bond Continuation Certificate, ATF Form 5130.23, contain
more explicit instructions than did previous editions. Conditions
for which these bond forms are issued have not changed and the execution
of these bond forms remains the same. Brewers and applicants must
use these revised bond forms the next time it is necessary to execute
a new Brewer's Bond or Brewer's Bond Continuation Certificate.
We are providing two new bond forms, the Brewer's Collateral Bond,
ATF Form 5130.25, and the Brewer's Collateral Bond Continuation
Certificate, ATF Form 5130.27. These bond forms are created specifically
for applicants or brewers who post collateral (cash or acceptable
securities) in lieu of submitting a bond backed by a corporate surety.
The collateral bond, ATF Form 5130.25, is simple since it requires
only a description of the cash or security tendered (Treasury note
or bill), and execution by the brewer or applicant. In the case
of a bond backed by a security certificate, a notary public must
witness the signature. The Brewer's Collateral Bond Continuation
Certificate, ATF Form 5130.27, requires only a description of the
bond form(s) that it continues in effect, plus execution and witnessing
similar to that required in using ATF Form 5130.25, Brewer's Collateral
Bond. You may execute ATF Form 5130.27, the collateral bond continuation
certificate, to continue coverage of an existing Brewer's Bond,
ATF Form 5130.22 that is backed by a security certificate.
How can I get these forms?
All of the new and revised forms may be obtained by contacting
us at the ATF Distribution Center, P.O. Box 5950, Springfield, VA
22150-5950; telephone (703) 455-7801. Copies of forms may be downloaded
from our Web site at www.atf.gov.
An initial supply of forms will not be sent to brewers.
Brewers and applicants should begin using the revised Brewer's
Notice, ATF Form 5130.10, immediately. Brewers and applicants should
begin using the new and revised bond forms the next time filing
a bond or continuation certificate is necessary. You may use the
revised Brewers Report of Operations and the new Brewpub Report
of Operations immediately. You must use these report forms beginning
with the April 2002 monthly report or for the quarterly report for
January through March 2002.
We are currently preparing a regulations document to address the
use of these new and revised forms. We welcome comments on the forms
and the information required on them.
Who should I contact with questions?
Inquiries about this circular should be addressed to: Regulations
Division, Office of Alcohol and Tobacco, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco
and Firearms, 650 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20226.
Bradley A. Buckles
Director
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