Archive for December 2025

In a year marked by political uncertainty, agency slowdowns, and a federal shutdown, cider still advanced—and your engagement made that possible. 

New Leadership, Renewed Focus

At the American Cider Association, 2025 began with a leadership shift that sharpened our advocacy work. Monica Cohen stepped into her role as CEO, while Jenn Root Martell took the lead on federal advocacy efforts. Together with the ACA Government Affairs Committee, we revisited and strengthened our policy priorities at both the state and federal levels.

A renewed emphasis was placed on advancing the Bubble Tax Bill, alongside ongoing engagement with the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau on cider labeling and geographic indicators. At the state level, ACA took a more proactive role supporting member cideries to align state cider definitions with the federal standard while also pushing back against neo-prohibitionist efforts to introduce new alcohol taxes in multiple states.

The Bubble Tax Bill Moves Forward

Throughout the year the ACA remained in steady contact with Congressional offices to ensure cider didn’t fall off the radar. We arranged regular meetings with Hill staff, cultivating new relationships, and reinforcing why cider deserves regulatory parity with other beverage alcohol categories—especially when it comes to the Bubble Tax Bill.

The reintroduction of our priority legislation in the House of Representatives by Rep. Andrea Salinas (D-OR-6) and Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI-3) gave us a critical window to raise visibility for fruited ciders and the producers and growers behind them. (Find the press release here.) We expanded our co-sponsor outreach to include Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA-16), Rep. JimmyPanetta (D-CA-19), Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-ME-1), Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY-24), Rep. Val Hoyle (D-OR-4), Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA-1), Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR-1) and Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-NC-11). On the Senate side Sen. Chuck Schumer continues to support the bill as we recruit additional members to co-sponsor. We deepened conversations with tax and trade staff and worked to keep the bill firmly positioned as a pragmatic, targeted fix – not a sweeping regulatory overhaul.

Members Make the Difference

This year made one thing clear: advocacy works best when it’s personal. The Do Gooder Campaign launched in July sent more than a hundred emails to Congressional offices and constituent meetings with Hill staff during the shutdown led to co-sponsorship commitments and great connections between our cider community and their representatives. Lawmakers listen carefully to constituents, and every email, meeting, and story shared by a cidermaker strengthens our case. Your voices are what turn policy ideas into real progress.

Looking to What’s Next

As Congress turns toward end-of-year appropriations and we look ahead to 2026, cider is better positioned than it has been in a long time. With renewed focus on tax reform in Washington, there will be multiple legislative opportunities to advance the Bubble Tax Bill in the year ahead.

To strengthen our presence and effectiveness, the American Cider Association will be partnering with a government affairs firm to elevate our visibility on Capitol Hill and advance our legislative priorities. This partnership will allow us to build capacity for larger initiatives that benefit the entire cider community. At the same time, we will continue to support state-level advocacy and the important work being done by our members across the country.

Now is the moment to stay engaged: attend CiderCon® to learn more about our advocacy efforts, meet with your elected officials, respond to action alerts, and keep sharing your story. Thank you for helping elevate cider at the federal level. We’re heading into the new year with real momentum and we can’t wait to build on it together.