Federal taxes on liquor date to 1791, when Alexander Hamilton's whiskey tax provoked the Whiskey Rebellion. For most of the twentieth century these taxes were administered by Treasury's Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. The Homeland Security Act of 2002 split that bureau in two: its law enforcement functions moved to the Justice Department as ATF, and its tax and regulatory functions stayed in Treasury as the TTB, which began operating on January 24, 2003.
The bureau collects federal excise taxes on beer, wine, and distilled spirits, on cigarettes and other tobacco products, and on firearms and ammunition, billions of dollars a year. It issues permits to distilleries, wineries, breweries, importers, and wholesalers, and it reviews and approves the labels on alcoholic beverages through its certificate of label approval system, enforcing rules on alcohol content, health warnings, and terms such as bourbon and the names of American wine regions.
TTB also investigates tax evasion and illegal diversion of alcohol and tobacco products, works on trade issues affecting American producers, and defines and approves American Viticultural Areas, the official wine grape regions such as Napa Valley. Its decisions on labeling and formulation shape a large industry, and producers have long pressed for faster label approvals and modernized rules.
| Status | Active |
| Abbreviation | TTB |
| Part of | The Department of the Treasury |
| Led by | Administrator |
| Legal basis | Homeland Security Act of 2002, Federal Alcohol Administration Act, Internal Revenue Code chapters 51 and 52 |
| Official site | ttb.gov |
| Created | 2003, split from ATF |
| Taxes collected | Alcohol, tobacco, firearms, ammunition |
| Label approvals | Certificates of label approval for alcoholic beverages |
| Also defines | American Viticultural Areas (wine regions) |
| Not to be confused with | ATF, the Justice Department enforcement agency |
| Date | Began operating January 24, 2003 |
| Location | 1310 G Street NW, Washington, D.C. |