Labeling and Advertising of Wine, Distilled Spirits, and Malt Beverages With Alcohol Content, Nutritional Information, Major Food Allergens, and Ingredients, 6171-6173 [2024-01855]
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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 21 / Wednesday, January 31, 2024 / Notices
hours of operation). We recommend that
you periodically check the Docket for
new submissions and supporting
material.
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Will my comments be made available to
the public?
[Docket No. TTB–2024–0002; Notice No.
232]
Yes. Be aware that your entire
comment, including your personal
identifying information, will be made
publicly available.
Labeling and Advertising of Wine,
Distilled Spirits, and Malt Beverages
With Alcohol Content, Nutritional
Information, Major Food Allergens, and
Ingredients
May I submit comments confidentially?
If you wish to submit comments
under a claim of confidentiality, you
should submit the information you
claim to be confidential commercial
information by email to SmallVessels@
dot.gov. Include in the email subject
heading ‘‘Contains Confidential
Commercial Information’’ or ‘‘Contains
CCI’’ and state in your submission, with
specificity, the basis for any such
confidential claim highlighting or
denoting the CCI portions. If possible,
please provide a summary of your
submission that can be made available
to the public.
In the event MARAD receives a
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)
request for the information, procedures
described in the Department’s FOIA
regulation at 49 CFR 7.29 will be
followed. Only information that is
ultimately determined to be confidential
under those procedures will be exempt
from disclosure under FOIA.
Privacy Act
Anyone can search the electronic
form of all comments received into any
of our dockets by the name of the
individual submitting the comment (or
signing the comment, if submitted on
behalf of an association, business, labor
union, etc.). For information on DOT’s
compliance with the Privacy Act, please
visit https://www.transportation.gov/
privacy.
(Authority: 49 CFR 1.93(a), 46 U.S.C. 55103,
46 U.S.C. 12121)
By Order of the Maritime Administrator.
T. Mitchell Hudson, Jr.,
Secretary, Maritime Administration.
[FR Doc. 2024–01886 Filed 1–30–24; 8:45 am]
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BILLING CODE 4910–81–P
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Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade
Bureau
Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and
Trade Bureau, Treasury.
ACTION: Announcement of listening
sessions; request for comments.
AGENCY:
The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax
and Trade Bureau (TTB) is announcing
virtual listening sessions to receive
input from the public on labeling of
wine, distilled spirits, and malt
beverages to disclose per-serving
alcohol and nutritional information,
major food allergens, and/or ingredients.
The Department of the Treasury’s
February 2022 report on ‘‘Competition
in the Markets for Beer, Wine, and
Spirits’’ recommended that TTB revive
or initiate rulemaking in these areas.
These listening sessions are intended to
engage the public, including consumers,
public health stakeholders, and industry
members of all sizes, and facilitate the
public’s ability to provide input to
inform rulemaking. This notice sets
forth the dates and times of the virtual
listening sessions and instructions for
registration. It also opens a docket for
submitting written comments on the
issues to be discussed in the listening
sessions.
SUMMARY:
DATES:
Listening sessions and requests to
speak: The virtual listening sessions
will be held February 28, 2024, from 10
a.m. to 2 p.m., Eastern Standard Time;
and February 29, 2024, from 1 p.m. to
5 p.m., Eastern Standard Time. The
deadline to register to virtually attend
either session is 12 p.m., Eastern
Standard Time, February 27, 2024.
Submit requests to speak during one of
the listening sessions by 12 p.m.,
Eastern Standard Time, on February 26,
2024. If all registered speakers have had
an opportunity to speak, the session
may conclude early.
Comment submissions: Written
comments on this notice must be
submitted by 11:59 p.m. Eastern
Standard Time, March 29, 2024. For
additional registration information, see
the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section
below.
ADDRESSES: Additional details, such as
registration information, are available at
PO 00000
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6171
https://www.ttb.gov/laws-regulationsand-public-guidance/listening-session.
You may also electronically submit
comments to TTB in response to this
notice and view any comments TTB
receives on it within Docket No. TTB–
2024–0002, as posted at https://
www.regulations.gov. A direct link to
this notice is available on the TTB
website at https://www.ttb.gov/rrd/
miscellaneous-federal-registerdocuments. Alternatively, you may
submit comments via postal mail to the
Director, Regulations and Ruling
Division, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and
Trade Bureau, 1310 G Street NW, Box
12, Washington, DC 20005. Please see
the Public Participation section of this
document for further information on the
comments requested and the
submission, confidentiality, and public
disclosure of comments.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Curt
Eilers, Regulations and Rulings
Division, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and
Trade Bureau, 1310 G Street NW, Box
12, Washington, DC 20005; telephone
202–453–1039, ext. 041.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
The purpose of this notice is to
announce virtual listening sessions and
the opening of a public docket to receive
input from the public on labeling of
wine, distilled spirits, and malt
beverages with per-serving alcohol and
nutritional information, major food
allergens, and/or ingredients. The
Department of the Treasury’s February
2022 report on ‘‘Competition in the
Markets for Beer, Wine, and Spirits’’
recommended that TTB revive or
initiate rulemaking in these areas. These
listening sessions are intended to engage
the public, including consumers, public
health stakeholders, and industry
members of all sizes, in addition to
those who may traditionally respond
through the rulemaking process, and
facilitate the public’s ability to provide
input to inform rulemaking.
The Federal Alcohol Administration
Act (FAA Act), 27 U.S.C. 205(e)(2),
authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury
to prescribe regulations that will
provide adequate information as to the
identity and quality of alcohol
beverages. The FAA Act does not
require alcohol beverage labels to
disclose a full list of ingredients,1 any
1 TTB regulations do require the disclosure of
certain specified ingredients that the Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) determined posed a
recognized health problem. TTB regulations require
labels to disclose the presence of FD&C Yellow No.
5, cochineal extract or carmine, and sulfites (when
present in alcohol beverages at a level of ten or
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Continued
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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 21 / Wednesday, January 31, 2024 / Notices
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major food allergens 2 used in the
production of alcohol beverages, or
nutritional information such as the
number of calories or the amount of
carbohydrate, protein, fat, or other
nutrients. TTB and its predecessor
agencies have published regulations on
the labeling of wine, distilled spirits,
and malt beverages in parts 4, 5, and 7,
respectively, of chapter I of title 27 of
the Code of Federal Regulations (27 CFR
chapter I). TTB also has provided
standards for voluntary nutrient content
statements (TTB Ruling 2013–2),
standards for voluntary disclosures of
major food allergens (27 CFR 4.32a–
4.32b, 5.82–5.83, and 7.82–7.83), and
requirements for alcohol content
disclosures for most alcohol beverages
(27 CFR 4.36, 5.65, and 7.65). TTB is
now considering whether the disclosure
of the information currently subject to
voluntary standards should instead be
required; whether required alcohol
content disclosures should be expanded
to a broader scope of beverages; and, if
so, how the information should be
presented.
In 2005, TTB sought comments in an
advance notice of proposed rulemaking
on alcohol content, nutritional
information, major food allergen, and
ingredient labeling. See Notice No. 41
(70 FR 22274, April 29, 2005).
TTB is now seeking updated input
regarding these topics. We are
particularly interested in whether
consumers will find such information
useful, the costs and burdens associated
with industry members providing that
information, and alternate approaches
for providing that information in a way
that is both effective and appropriately
balances the benefit to consumers with
the costs and burdens on industry
members.
This action follows the Department of
the Treasury’s report, issued on
February 9, 2022, titled ‘‘Competition in
the Markets for Beer, Wine and Spirits,’’
that included recommendations related
to labeling alcohol beverages with
nutrition, major food allergen, and
ingredient information.3 The
Department issued the report pursuant
to Executive Order (E.O.) 14036,
‘‘Promoting Competition in the
American Economy.’’ Among other
more parts per million). The regulations also
require a warning statement when aspartame is
present. See 27 CFR 4.32, 5.63, and 7.63.
2 Major food allergens include milk, eggs, fish,
Crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat,
soybeans, and sesame. See 21 U.S.C. 321(qq) and
343(w). More information on major food allergens
is available at https://www.fda.gov/food/foodlabeling-nutrition/food-allergies.
3 The report is available at https://
home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/CompetitionReport.pdf.
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things, Treasury addressed text in E.O.
14036 that asked the Department to
review labeling regulations ‘‘that may
unnecessarily inhibit competition by
increasing costs without serving any
public health, informational, or tax
purpose.’’ The report found that
‘‘[r]egulatory proposals that could serve
public health and foster competition by
providing information to consumers,
such as mandatory allergen, nutrition,
and ingredient labeling proposals, have
not been implemented.’’ The report
contains several recommendations,
including that ‘‘TTB should revive or
initiate rulemaking proposing ingredient
labeling and mandatory information on
alcohol content, nutritional content, and
appropriate serving sizes.’’
Further, in April 2023, the President
signed Executive Order 14094,
‘‘Modernizing Regulatory Review,’’
encouraging agencies to provide
opportunities for public participation in
regulatory actions to promote equitable
and meaningful participation by a range
of interested or affected parties,
including underserved communities.
The Office of Management and Budget’s
guidance for implementing E.O. 14094
encourages Federal agencies to solicit
comments in non-written formats, such
as live webinars or audio recordings, to
encourage participation from members
of the public who might not otherwise
participate in the regulatory process and
to use virtual listening sessions to reach
people who may be unable to attend inperson sessions. The guidance also
provides that listening sessions are most
appropriate before a proposed rule.
II. Topics for Comment
To facilitate input from the public,
including individual consumers,
consumer and other public interest
groups, public health stakeholders,
affected industry members of all sizes,
and any other interested parties, TTB
has developed the following list of
questions. TTB encourages commenters
to explain the rationale behind their
comments and to include any available
supporting data and other information,
as appropriate.
1. Do consumers believe that they are
adequately informed by the information
currently provided on alcohol beverage
labels?
2. Is alcohol content per serving, and
nutritional information (such as
calories, carbohydrates, protein, and fat)
per serving important for consumers in
deciding whether to purchase or
consume a particular alcohol beverage?
Would a full list of ingredients, and/or
major food allergens, be important
information for consumers in making
their purchasing or consumption
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decisions? In what ways would this
information be useful, and in what ways
could it be misleading? Is some of this
information more important than
others?
3. What types of per-serving
nutritional information, such as
calories, carbohydrates, protein, and fat,
should be included?
4. Would requiring this information
on labels be expected to increase the
cost of the products and, if so, by how
much? To what extent are businesses
already following voluntary guidelines
for this information? Are there
alternative ways of providing the
information, for example by allowing
information to be provided through a
website using a quick response code
(QR code) or website address on the
label?
5. How would any new mandatory
labeling requirements particularly affect
small businesses and new businesses
entering the marketplace?
III. Public Participation
As the intent of the public listening
sessions is to allow the general public
to provide input to TTB on aspects of
potential approaches to labeling of
wine, distilled spirits, and malt
beverages with alcohol content,
nutritional information, major food
allergens, and/or ingredients, the
sessions have been designed to facilitate
one-way communications. Outside of
introductory and logistical remarks,
TTB will not be providing substantive
information on the topic or responding
to comments during the public listening
sessions. Attendance at the listening
sessions will be capped depending on
webinar capacity limitations.
Registration to attend virtual listening
sessions. TTB will hold virtual listening
sessions on February 28, 2024, from 10
a.m. to 2 p.m., Eastern Standard Time,
and on February 29, 2024, from 1 p.m.
to 5 p.m., Eastern Standard Time. To
register for either of the free virtual
listening sessions, please visit the
following website: https://www.ttb.gov/
laws-regulations-and-public-guidance/
listening-session. You may register until
12 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, on
February 27, 2024. Live closed
captioning will be available during the
listening sessions. TTB is committed to
ensuring all participants have equal
access to the session regardless of
disability status. If you require
reasonable accommodation due to a
disability to fully participate, please
contact TTB at Outreach@ttb.gov or
202–508–0271 as soon as possible but
no later than 5 days in advance of the
session you wish to attend.
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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 21 / Wednesday, January 31, 2024 / Notices
TTB reserves the right to reschedule
or cancel the session for any reason,
including a health emergency or severe
weather that impacts the ability of TTB
to conduct the session safely and
effectively at the proposed date and
time. Any changes or updates to the
date or start and end time for the session
will be posted on https://www.ttb.gov/
laws-regulations-and-public-guidance/
listening-session.
Requests to speak. When you register,
you may indicate whether you wish to
speak and during which session. You
must submit such requests by 12 p.m.,
Eastern Standard Time, on February 26,
2024. We will attempt to accommodate
each speaker’s session preference;
however, if we are unable to do so, we
will make the determination on a firstcome, first-served basis, based on the
time and date of the registration request.
TTB will notify speakers of the order
in which they are scheduled to speak
and provide information on how to log
in to the session as a speaker. An
individual may speak during only one
of the sessions (i.e., either on February
28, 2024, or on February 29, 2024, but
not both). TTB reserves the right to
reject the registration of an entity,
individual, or individual affiliated with
an entity, that is already scheduled to
present comments, to ensure that a
broad range of entities and individuals
are able to present. We will limit each
participant’s comments to 5 minutes.
No presentation, or commercial or
promotional material, will be permitted
to be displayed during the listening
sessions.
Streaming webcast of the listening
sessions: The listening sessions will be
webcast. Please register online as
described above to attend or to request
to speak. Registrants will receive a
hyperlink that provides access to the
webcast.
Transcripts: As soon as transcripts of
the listening sessions are available, they
will be placed in Docket No. TTB–2024–
0002 and will be accessible at https://
www.regulations.gov.
Submitting comments: You may
submit comments as an individual or on
behalf of a business or other
organization via the Regulations.gov
website or via postal mail, as described
in the ADDRESSES section of this
document. Your comment must
reference Docket No. TTB–2024–0002
and must be submitted or postmarked
by the closing date shown in the DATES
section of this document. You may
upload or include attachments with
your comment. You do not have to
register to speak in order to submit
written comments on this docket.
Confidentiality and Disclosure of
Comments: All submitted comments
and attachments are subject to public
disclosure. Do not enclose any material
in your comments that you consider
confidential or that would be
inappropriate for public disclosure.
TTB will post, and you may view,
copies of this document and any
comments TTB receives within the
related Regulations.gov docket. In
general, TTB will post comments as
submitted, and it will not redact any
identifying or contact information from
the body of a comment or attachment.
Please contact TTB’s Regulations and
Rulings Division by email using the web
form available at https://www.ttb.gov/
contact-rrd, or by telephone at 202–453–
2265, if you have any questions
regarding comments on this proposal or
to request copies of this document, its
supporting materials, or the comments
received in response.
TTB notes, the public meeting is
being held solely for information and
program-planning purposes. Input
provided during the public meeting
does not bind TTB to any further action.
Executive Summary: On December 11,
2023, the Community Development
Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund)
published a Notice of Funds
Availability (NOFA) inviting
Applications for Financial Assistance
(FA) or Technical Assistance (TA)
awards under the Native American CDFI
Assistance (NACA Program) fiscal year
(FY) 2024 Funding Round. The CDFI
Fund is issuing this notice to correct the
maximum TA award amount cited in
the Executive Summary of the NOFA.
In the Federal Register/Vol. 88, No.
236/Monday, December 11, 2023/
Notices. On page 85995, in the third
column, the following sentence of the
Executive Summary: ‘‘(ii) TA awards of
up to $300,000 to build Certified, and
Emerging CDFIs’ organizational capacity
to serve Eligible Markets and/or their
Target Markets, and Sponsoring Entities’
ability to create Certified CDFIs that
serve Native Communities’’ is corrected
to read: ‘‘(ii) TA awards of up to
$400,000 to build Certified, and
Emerging CDFIs’ organizational capacity
to serve Eligible Markets and/or their
Target Markets, and Sponsoring Entities’
ability to create Certified CDFIs that
serve Native Communities.’’
All other award amount information
shall remain in accordance with the
NOFA published on December 11, 2023.
Signed: January 25, 2024.
Mary G. Ryan,
Administrator.
A. General Information and CDFI Fund
Support
[FR Doc. 2024–01855 Filed 1–30–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810–31–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Community Development Financial
Institutions Fund
Notice of Funds Availability
Technical correction to the
maximum TA award amount cited in
the Executive Summary of the NOFA.
ACTION:
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Funding Opportunity Number: CDFI–
2024–NACA.
Catalog of Federal Domestic
Assistance (CFDA) Number: 21.012.
I. Agency Contacts
The CDFI Fund will respond to
questions concerning the NOFA and the
Application between the hours of 9:00
a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time,
starting on the date that the NOFA was
published through the dates listed in
this notice. The CDFI Fund strongly
recommends Applicants submit
questions to the CDFI Fund via an AMIS
service request to the NACA Program,
Office of Certification Policy and
Evaluation, the Office of Compliance
Monitoring and Evaluation, or IT Help
Desk. Other information regarding the
CDFI Fund and its programs may be
obtained from the CDFI Fund’s website
at https://www.cdfifund.gov.
B. The CDFI Fund’s Contact Information
is as Follows:
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TABLE A—CONTACT INFORMATION
Type of question
Preferred method
Telephone number
(not toll free)
NACA Program Questions .............
CDFI Certification ..........................
Compliance Monitoring and Evaluation.
Service Request via AMIS ...........
Service Request via AMIS ...........
Service Request via AMIS ...........
202–653–0421, Option 1 ..............
202–653–0423 ..............................
202–653–0423 ..............................
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Email addresses
cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov.
ccme@cdfi.treas.gov.
ccme@cdfi.treas.gov.
31JAN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 21 (Wednesday, January 31, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6171-6173]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-01855]
=======================================================================
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau
[Docket No. TTB-2024-0002; Notice No. 232]
Labeling and Advertising of Wine, Distilled Spirits, and Malt
Beverages With Alcohol Content, Nutritional Information, Major Food
Allergens, and Ingredients
AGENCY: Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, Treasury.
ACTION: Announcement of listening sessions; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) is
announcing virtual listening sessions to receive input from the public
on labeling of wine, distilled spirits, and malt beverages to disclose
per-serving alcohol and nutritional information, major food allergens,
and/or ingredients. The Department of the Treasury's February 2022
report on ``Competition in the Markets for Beer, Wine, and Spirits''
recommended that TTB revive or initiate rulemaking in these areas.
These listening sessions are intended to engage the public, including
consumers, public health stakeholders, and industry members of all
sizes, and facilitate the public's ability to provide input to inform
rulemaking. This notice sets forth the dates and times of the virtual
listening sessions and instructions for registration. It also opens a
docket for submitting written comments on the issues to be discussed in
the listening sessions.
DATES:
Listening sessions and requests to speak: The virtual listening
sessions will be held February 28, 2024, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.,
Eastern Standard Time; and February 29, 2024, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.,
Eastern Standard Time. The deadline to register to virtually attend
either session is 12 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, February 27, 2024.
Submit requests to speak during one of the listening sessions by 12
p.m., Eastern Standard Time, on February 26, 2024. If all registered
speakers have had an opportunity to speak, the session may conclude
early.
Comment submissions: Written comments on this notice must be
submitted by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, March 29, 2024. For
additional registration information, see the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
section below.
ADDRESSES: Additional details, such as registration information, are
available at https://www.ttb.gov/laws-regulations-and-public-guidance/listening-session. You may also electronically submit comments to TTB
in response to this notice and view any comments TTB receives on it
within Docket No. TTB-2024-0002, as posted at https://www.regulations.gov. A direct link to this notice is available on the
TTB website at https://www.ttb.gov/rrd/miscellaneous-federal-register-documents. Alternatively, you may submit comments via postal mail to
the Director, Regulations and Ruling Division, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax
and Trade Bureau, 1310 G Street NW, Box 12, Washington, DC 20005.
Please see the Public Participation section of this document for
further information on the comments requested and the submission,
confidentiality, and public disclosure of comments.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Curt Eilers, Regulations and Rulings
Division, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, 1310 G Street NW,
Box 12, Washington, DC 20005; telephone 202-453-1039, ext. 041.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
The purpose of this notice is to announce virtual listening
sessions and the opening of a public docket to receive input from the
public on labeling of wine, distilled spirits, and malt beverages with
per-serving alcohol and nutritional information, major food allergens,
and/or ingredients. The Department of the Treasury's February 2022
report on ``Competition in the Markets for Beer, Wine, and Spirits''
recommended that TTB revive or initiate rulemaking in these areas.
These listening sessions are intended to engage the public, including
consumers, public health stakeholders, and industry members of all
sizes, in addition to those who may traditionally respond through the
rulemaking process, and facilitate the public's ability to provide
input to inform rulemaking.
The Federal Alcohol Administration Act (FAA Act), 27 U.S.C.
205(e)(2), authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to prescribe
regulations that will provide adequate information as to the identity
and quality of alcohol beverages. The FAA Act does not require alcohol
beverage labels to disclose a full list of ingredients,\1\ any
[[Page 6172]]
major food allergens \2\ used in the production of alcohol beverages,
or nutritional information such as the number of calories or the amount
of carbohydrate, protein, fat, or other nutrients. TTB and its
predecessor agencies have published regulations on the labeling of
wine, distilled spirits, and malt beverages in parts 4, 5, and 7,
respectively, of chapter I of title 27 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (27 CFR chapter I). TTB also has provided standards for
voluntary nutrient content statements (TTB Ruling 2013-2), standards
for voluntary disclosures of major food allergens (27 CFR 4.32a-4.32b,
5.82-5.83, and 7.82-7.83), and requirements for alcohol content
disclosures for most alcohol beverages (27 CFR 4.36, 5.65, and 7.65).
TTB is now considering whether the disclosure of the information
currently subject to voluntary standards should instead be required;
whether required alcohol content disclosures should be expanded to a
broader scope of beverages; and, if so, how the information should be
presented.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ TTB regulations do require the disclosure of certain
specified ingredients that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
determined posed a recognized health problem. TTB regulations
require labels to disclose the presence of FD&C Yellow No. 5,
cochineal extract or carmine, and sulfites (when present in alcohol
beverages at a level of ten or more parts per million). The
regulations also require a warning statement when aspartame is
present. See 27 CFR 4.32, 5.63, and 7.63.
\2\ Major food allergens include milk, eggs, fish, Crustacean
shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans, and sesame. See 21
U.S.C. 321(qq) and 343(w). More information on major food allergens
is available at https://www.fda.gov/food/food-labeling-nutrition/food-allergies.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In 2005, TTB sought comments in an advance notice of proposed
rulemaking on alcohol content, nutritional information, major food
allergen, and ingredient labeling. See Notice No. 41 (70 FR 22274,
April 29, 2005).
TTB is now seeking updated input regarding these topics. We are
particularly interested in whether consumers will find such information
useful, the costs and burdens associated with industry members
providing that information, and alternate approaches for providing that
information in a way that is both effective and appropriately balances
the benefit to consumers with the costs and burdens on industry
members.
This action follows the Department of the Treasury's report, issued
on February 9, 2022, titled ``Competition in the Markets for Beer, Wine
and Spirits,'' that included recommendations related to labeling
alcohol beverages with nutrition, major food allergen, and ingredient
information.\3\ The Department issued the report pursuant to Executive
Order (E.O.) 14036, ``Promoting Competition in the American Economy.''
Among other things, Treasury addressed text in E.O. 14036 that asked
the Department to review labeling regulations ``that may unnecessarily
inhibit competition by increasing costs without serving any public
health, informational, or tax purpose.'' The report found that
``[r]egulatory proposals that could serve public health and foster
competition by providing information to consumers, such as mandatory
allergen, nutrition, and ingredient labeling proposals, have not been
implemented.'' The report contains several recommendations, including
that ``TTB should revive or initiate rulemaking proposing ingredient
labeling and mandatory information on alcohol content, nutritional
content, and appropriate serving sizes.''
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ The report is available at https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/Competition-Report.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Further, in April 2023, the President signed Executive Order 14094,
``Modernizing Regulatory Review,'' encouraging agencies to provide
opportunities for public participation in regulatory actions to promote
equitable and meaningful participation by a range of interested or
affected parties, including underserved communities. The Office of
Management and Budget's guidance for implementing E.O. 14094 encourages
Federal agencies to solicit comments in non-written formats, such as
live webinars or audio recordings, to encourage participation from
members of the public who might not otherwise participate in the
regulatory process and to use virtual listening sessions to reach
people who may be unable to attend in-person sessions. The guidance
also provides that listening sessions are most appropriate before a
proposed rule.
II. Topics for Comment
To facilitate input from the public, including individual
consumers, consumer and other public interest groups, public health
stakeholders, affected industry members of all sizes, and any other
interested parties, TTB has developed the following list of questions.
TTB encourages commenters to explain the rationale behind their
comments and to include any available supporting data and other
information, as appropriate.
1. Do consumers believe that they are adequately informed by the
information currently provided on alcohol beverage labels?
2. Is alcohol content per serving, and nutritional information
(such as calories, carbohydrates, protein, and fat) per serving
important for consumers in deciding whether to purchase or consume a
particular alcohol beverage? Would a full list of ingredients, and/or
major food allergens, be important information for consumers in making
their purchasing or consumption decisions? In what ways would this
information be useful, and in what ways could it be misleading? Is some
of this information more important than others?
3. What types of per-serving nutritional information, such as
calories, carbohydrates, protein, and fat, should be included?
4. Would requiring this information on labels be expected to
increase the cost of the products and, if so, by how much? To what
extent are businesses already following voluntary guidelines for this
information? Are there alternative ways of providing the information,
for example by allowing information to be provided through a website
using a quick response code (QR code) or website address on the label?
5. How would any new mandatory labeling requirements particularly
affect small businesses and new businesses entering the marketplace?
III. Public Participation
As the intent of the public listening sessions is to allow the
general public to provide input to TTB on aspects of potential
approaches to labeling of wine, distilled spirits, and malt beverages
with alcohol content, nutritional information, major food allergens,
and/or ingredients, the sessions have been designed to facilitate one-
way communications. Outside of introductory and logistical remarks, TTB
will not be providing substantive information on the topic or
responding to comments during the public listening sessions. Attendance
at the listening sessions will be capped depending on webinar capacity
limitations.
Registration to attend virtual listening sessions. TTB will hold
virtual listening sessions on February 28, 2024, from 10 a.m. to 2
p.m., Eastern Standard Time, and on February 29, 2024, from 1 p.m. to 5
p.m., Eastern Standard Time. To register for either of the free virtual
listening sessions, please visit the following website: https://www.ttb.gov/laws-regulations-and-public-guidance/listening-session. You
may register until 12 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, on February 27,
2024. Live closed captioning will be available during the listening
sessions. TTB is committed to ensuring all participants have equal
access to the session regardless of disability status. If you require
reasonable accommodation due to a disability to fully participate,
please contact TTB at [email protected] or 202-508-0271 as soon as
possible but no later than 5 days in advance of the session you wish to
attend.
[[Page 6173]]
TTB reserves the right to reschedule or cancel the session for any
reason, including a health emergency or severe weather that impacts the
ability of TTB to conduct the session safely and effectively at the
proposed date and time. Any changes or updates to the date or start and
end time for the session will be posted on https://www.ttb.gov/laws-regulations-and-public-guidance/listening-session.
Requests to speak. When you register, you may indicate whether you
wish to speak and during which session. You must submit such requests
by 12 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, on February 26, 2024. We will
attempt to accommodate each speaker's session preference; however, if
we are unable to do so, we will make the determination on a first-come,
first-served basis, based on the time and date of the registration
request.
TTB will notify speakers of the order in which they are scheduled
to speak and provide information on how to log in to the session as a
speaker. An individual may speak during only one of the sessions (i.e.,
either on February 28, 2024, or on February 29, 2024, but not both).
TTB reserves the right to reject the registration of an entity,
individual, or individual affiliated with an entity, that is already
scheduled to present comments, to ensure that a broad range of entities
and individuals are able to present. We will limit each participant's
comments to 5 minutes.
No presentation, or commercial or promotional material, will be
permitted to be displayed during the listening sessions.
Streaming webcast of the listening sessions: The listening sessions
will be webcast. Please register online as described above to attend or
to request to speak. Registrants will receive a hyperlink that provides
access to the webcast.
Transcripts: As soon as transcripts of the listening sessions are
available, they will be placed in Docket No. TTB-2024-0002 and will be
accessible at https://www.regulations.gov.
Submitting comments: You may submit comments as an individual or on
behalf of a business or other organization via the Regulations.gov
website or via postal mail, as described in the ADDRESSES section of
this document. Your comment must reference Docket No. TTB-2024-0002 and
must be submitted or postmarked by the closing date shown in the DATES
section of this document. You may upload or include attachments with
your comment. You do not have to register to speak in order to submit
written comments on this docket.
Confidentiality and Disclosure of Comments: All submitted comments
and attachments are subject to public disclosure. Do not enclose any
material in your comments that you consider confidential or that would
be inappropriate for public disclosure.
TTB will post, and you may view, copies of this document and any
comments TTB receives within the related Regulations.gov docket. In
general, TTB will post comments as submitted, and it will not redact
any identifying or contact information from the body of a comment or
attachment.
Please contact TTB's Regulations and Rulings Division by email
using the web form available at https://www.ttb.gov/contact-rrd, or by
telephone at 202-453-2265, if you have any questions regarding comments
on this proposal or to request copies of this document, its supporting
materials, or the comments received in response.
TTB notes, the public meeting is being held solely for information
and program-planning purposes. Input provided during the public meeting
does not bind TTB to any further action.
Signed: January 25, 2024.
Mary G. Ryan,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2024-01855 Filed 1-30-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-31-P
