TTB and California Authorities Conduct Joint Trade Practice Investigations

Posted 02/26/2018

[Image caption: TTB Investigation Leads to Guilty Plea for Conspiring to Defraud the United States by Diverting Millions of Untaxed Cigarettes]

Napa, California —This week, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) conducted a joint operation with Agents from the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control into alleged prohibited trade practices in Napa and Sonoma Counties.

The focus of this TTB investigation is on consignment sales arrangements, which, like other unlawful trade practices, are used to gain an unfair advantage over law-abiding industry members and ultimately limit consumer choice. 

TTB remains committed to securing a level playing field nationwide for law-abiding businesses and appreciates this opportunity to work together with our law enforcement partners in California to ensure that existing industry members and smaller businesses just entering the marketplace can compete fairly based on customer service and consumer preference.

For more information regarding unlawful trade practices, please visit our Trade Practices Laws and Regulations page.

Report potential trade practice violations to TTB at tradepractices@ttb.gov.
For questions related to the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, please contact Public Information Officer John Carr at (916) 419-2525.