BBB, ICE, Tariffs, and Wine
After a lot of wrangling within and between the House and Senate, the “Big Beautiful Bill” Act was passed and sent to President Trump for his signature on July 4 as he had requested, or some say insisted. It is basically a massive budget bill reflecting his legislative priorities.
There were many controversial aspects of the bill, including changes to Medicaid and SNAP food assistance for the poor, as well as the impact on increasing the national debt, but overall the grape and wine industry fared okay, and in one case, very well.
Funding for the Market Assistance Program (MAP) doubled to $400 million for the promotion of American agricultural products including wine. For many years, the wine industries of California, New York, Oregon and Washington have benefited from this program, and this increase comes at a very opportune time. Other vital agricultural programs like the Specialty Crop Block Grant program, Specialty Crop Research Initiative Plan, and more were also continued with sustainable funding levels.
Two other developments unrelated to the BBB are having serious implications for our industry. As harvest approaches, the continuation of ICE enforcement actions is causing great uncertainty about whether there will be sufficient skilled labor to harvest the crop. (In Washington State, the nation’s largest cherry producer, regular workers did not show up for fear of arrest and deportation.) In a rather unbelievable proposal, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins suggested that Medicaid recipients who will be required to work could replace the migrants who are not allowed to. Few people understand that vineyard work requires highly trained skilled labor, not just people off the street.
And the continuing tariff wars, including with key allies like Canada and the European Union, are creating great uncertainty about future American wine sales. US wines are already being boycotted by Canada, the largest export market worth over $1 billion annually, and Canadian tourists are boycotting US destinations, including the significant wine-producing states like New York, Michigan, and Washington. Tariffs are never good for wine, and WineAmerica joined Wine Institute and other beverage organizations in sending a letter to President Trump about the issue.
To say we are in challenging times is an understatement, but having been in this industry for 43 years, I strongly believe we will get through all this and emerge stronger. It’s happened before, and in a few years we will know retrospectively how we grew smarter and stronger.