Sec. 101.671.  PRIOR APPROVAL OF DISTILLED SPIRITS AND WINE.  (a)  Before an authorized permittee may ship distilled spirits or wine into the state or sell distilled spirits or wine within the state, the permittee must register the distilled spirits or wine with the commission and provide proof that the permittee is the primary American source of supply for purposes of Section 37.10.  Except for rare or vintage wine that is acquired at auction and for which no certificate is available, the registration application must include a certificate of label approval issued by the United States Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau for the product.  Rare or vintage wine purchased at auction and registered by the commission under this subsection must comply with all other provisions of this code, including provisions regarding the sale, purchase, importation, and distribution of that wine.
(b)  On registration of a certificate of label approval issued by the United States Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, the commission shall approve the product under this section and issue a letter to that effect to the permittee unless the commission determines the product, despite having a valid federal certificate of label approval, would create a public safety concern, create a cross-tier violation, or otherwise violate this code.  The commission may not require additional approval for the product unless there is a change to the label or product that requires reissuance of the federal certificate of label approval.  The commission shall accept the certificate of label approval as constituting full compliance only with any applicable standards adopted under Section 5.38 regarding quality, purity, and identity of distilled spirits or wine.
(c)  The commission may not register a product unless the application is accompanied by a fee set by the commission in an amount that is sufficient to cover the cost of administering this section.  A copy of the registration shall be kept on file in the office of the commission.
(c-1)  Not later than the 30th day after the date the commission receives an application for registration of a product under this section, the commission shall either approve or deny the registration application. If the commission denies the application for a product with a valid federal certificate of label approval or fails to act on the application within the time required by this subsection, the permittee submitting the application is entitled to an administrative hearing before the State Office of Administrative Hearings.
(d)  The commission by rule shall establish procedures for:
(1)  accepting:
(A)  federal certificates of label approval for registration under this section; and
(B)  proof, such as a letter of authorization, that a permittee is the primary American source of supply of the product or brand for purposes of Section 37.10; and
(2)  registering alcoholic beverage products that are not eligible to receive a certificate of label approval issued by the United States Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau.
(e)  The commission shall consider the nutrition label requirements of the United States Food and Drug Administration and the alcohol label requirements of the United States Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau in developing the label requirements to register products described by Subsection (d)(2).
(f)  The rules adopted under this section may not require testing for alcohol content as part of the process for registering an alcoholic beverage with the commission.
Added by Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 68 (S.B. 904), Sec. 21, eff. September 1, 2007.
Amended by: 
Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1181 (S.B. 950), Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2013.
Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 440 (H.B. 1348), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2015.
Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1359 (H.B. 1545), Sec. 279, eff. December 31, 2020.