Establishes the New York wine council program within the department of economic development

2 Co-sponsors

• Tony Avella
• George D. Maziarz

BILL NUMBER:S5176

Title of bill

An act to amend the economic development law, in relation to establishing the New York wine council program

Purpose

To create and implement a New York Wine Council within the Department of Economic Development to promote New York as a premiere producer of high quality wines and to enhance brand recognition for New York wines within and outside of NY State for the purpose of increasing sales and production of fine NY wines and increased tax revenue for the people of New York State.

Summary of provisions

Section 1: Legislative findings.

Section 2: Section 181-f of the Economic Development Law will create a NY Wine Council. § 181-h of the Economic Development Law will create a NY Wine Council consisting of an executive director and a 10-member board of directors, including one member to be appointed by the governor, for the purpose of providing feedback to the executive and legislative branches, one Member to be appointed by The NY Wine and Grape foundation, for the purpose of coordinating with NY wine and grapes tourism and agricultural programs. These two members are Ex Officio non-voting members. The remaining eight members of the board will be made up of one representative from a restaurant association within NY State, one representative from a wine retailer association and 6 winery representatives.

The winery members shall be representative of the 6 wine growing regions in NY State: Long Island, Hudson Valley, The Finger Lakes, Thousand Islands, Lake Erie, and Niagara. If new regions are developed and recognized, they shall be added to the board. The Council will be charged with branding and promoting high quality New York State wines. The Council shall submit an annual report detailing the marketing and promotion strategies applied to carry out its mission.

Justification

New York State is number 2 in the country in wine consumption and the third largest producer of wine in the United States - behind only California and Washington- but falls far short of other states in supporting this important industry. The industry today is strong in the tourism areas, but is in need of stronger consumer awareness and demand for the high quality products being produced across the state. In an effort to create an opportunity for the State to generate sales tax revenue along with increasing the number of new jobs within the wine industry, and to promote the sale and enjoyment of New York Wines, this bill would create the New York Wine Council. The Council would promote New York wines in concert with the tourism industry,

wineries, retailers and restaurants within and outside of NY State. A marketing campaign to be undertaken will educate New Yorkers and other consumers as to the quality and benefits of New York's fine wines. The approach will be to focus on NY City first, then nearby metro areas, such as Washington D.C., Boston, MA, and Philadelphia, PA. Specific plans will be developed by the Council and progress reported to the State on an annual basis with key performance indicators and metrics to measure the success of the efforts.

Prior legislative history

This is a new bill.

Fiscal implications

None.

Effective date

Immediately.