A Call to Action!

I poached the article below straight from:

http://craftsuds.com/2013/02/06/attention-kansas-homebrewers/

The American Homebrewers Association has issued an action alert that impacts Kansas homebrewers.

On Friday, February 8, 2013, House Bill 2223, a bill created to allow Kansas homebrewers to legally share homebrew at club meetings and enter homebrew competitions, will be introduced to the House Committee on Federal and State Affairs.

As many of you already know, Kansas is a bit ass-backwards (to put it nicely) when it comes to its liquor laws. If you’re like me and have wondered how you can help make things better, then this is your chance to have your voice heard. To help, contact the Committee members that will be reviewing this bill. Steve Cook, the President of the KC Bier Meisters homebrew club, put together a list of committee members and their e-mail addresses, which I’ve included below, along with some tips that Steve has outlined.

If you send an e-mail:

1.Do not send from a government e-mail address (ksu.edu, for example).

2.Be polite, asking them to support the “Home Brew Bill” because you want to legally transport your home brew to share with others at club meetings and at competitions.

3.Keep it short. 2 or 3 lines is all you need.

4.Be sure to have a personalized salutation to each legislator. Do not send a mass mailing to all the members at once. If it is personalized, it will have more of an impact. Thank them at the end of the email for their public service. They work for peanuts and spend much time on our behalf.

List of Committee members:

•Arlen H. Siegfreid, R-121st (Chair) arlen.siegfreid@house.ks.gov
•Steven R. Brunk, R-85th (Vice Chair) steve.brunk@house.ks.gov
•Rob Bruchman, R-20th rob.bruchman@house.ks.gov
•Larry Campbell, R-26th larry.campbell@house.ks.gov
•J. R. Claeys, R-69th jrclaeys@house.ks.gov
•Susan L. Concannon, R-107th susan.concannon@house.ks.gov
•Ken Corbet, R-54th ken.corbet@house.ks.gov
•Travis Couture-Lovelady, R-110th travis.couture-lovelady@house.ks.gov
•Willie Dove, R-38th willie.dove@house.ks.gov
•Shanti Gandhi, R-52nd shanti.gandhi@house.ks.gov
•Brett Hildabrand, R-17th brett.hildabrand@house.ks.gov
•Michael Houser, R-1st michael.houser@house.ks.gov
•Robert (Bob) Montgomery, R-15th bob.montgomery@house.ks.gov
•Reid Petty, R-125th reid.petty@house.ks.gov
•Marty Read, R-4th marty.read@house.ks.gov
•Allan Rothlisberg, R-65th allan.rothlisberg@house.ks.gov
•Troy L. Waymaster, R-109th troy.waymaster@house.ks.gov
•Louis E. Ruiz, D-31st (Ranking Member) louis.ruiz@house.ks.gov
•Broderick Henderson, D-35th broderick.henderson@house.ks.gov
•Emily Perry, D-24th emily.perry@house.ks.gov
•Michael J. Peterson, D-32nd michael.peterson@house.ks.gov
•Annie Tietze, D-53rd annie.tietze@house.ks.gov
•Ponka-We Victors, D-103rd ponka-we.victors@house.ks.gov

Update:

Per the recommendation of a friend, I’ve included an example of the language that you can use when sending the e-mail. Copy and paste this as the body of your e-mail, or tweak it how you see fit.

Dear < > ,

My name is < >, and I’m writing today to encourage you to support House Bill 2223, which authorizes the production and transportation of homemade fermented beverages. As a homebrewer who resides in Kansas, I feel it is important to update current Kansas Statutes to allow me to share my homemade beer with friends, fellow homebrew club members, and enter it into competitions.

Thank you for your time and your service to residents in the state of Kansas.

Sincerely,