The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has struck down a long-standing federal prohibition on home distilling, ruling that the ban exceeds the constitutional authority of Congress. The decision, handed down on April 10, 2026, effectively ends a restriction that has been a fixture of federal law since 1868.
The case, McNutt v. US Dept of Justice, was brought by the Hobby Distillers Association (HDA) and several individual enthusiasts, including Scott McNutt and Rick Morris. The plaintiffs argued that the federal government’s refusal to allow at-home production of distilled spirits for personal consumption violated the Constitution.
Writing for the court, Circuit Judge Edith Hollan Jones stated that while the law is “venerable,” it ultimately fails to satisfy the Taxation and Necessary and Proper clauses of the Constitution.
The federal government defended the ban by citing its power to lay and collect taxes. Officials from the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) and the Department of Justice argued that prohibiting stills in dwelling houses, yards, or sheds was necessary to prevent tax evasion. They contended that home-based operations are easier to conceal from tax collectors.
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However, the court rejected this logic. Judge Jones noted that the primary purpose of a tax is to raise revenue, whereas this law actively prevents the creation of taxable spirits.
“The power to ‘lay and collect Taxes’ means Congress can charge or demand money from taxpayers,” the opinion states. “Congress’s authority under the taxing power is limited to requiring an individual to pay money into the Federal Treasury, no more.”
The court found that by criminalizing the act of distilling at home rather than taxing the product itself, Congress had overstepped its bounds. The ruling emphasized that the government cannot prohibit an activity solely because it might produce something difficult to tax.
The lawsuit involved several hobbyists with distinct backgrounds. Rick Morris, a certified bourbon steward, wanted to experiment with recipes in his backyard. Scott McNutt had already been distilling fuel alcohol legally under a permit but wished to “tinker around” with spirits for beverage purposes.
The district court had originally dismissed some of the plaintiffs for lack of standing, but the Fifth Circuit reversed that portion of the ruling. The appellate judges determined that because the TTB had a history of enforcement—including a 2014 warning letter sent to McNutt—the threat of prosecution was “credible” and not “chimerical.”
The court noted that the HDA, which represents over 1,300 members, also had the right to sue on behalf of its members to protect their interests in “encouraging the legalization of at-home hobby distilling.”
The Fifth Circuit’s analysis heavily cited the Necessary and Proper Clause, which allows Congress to pass laws required to execute its enumerated powers. The court ruled that the distilling ban was not “plainly adapted” to the goal of tax collection.
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The opinion pointed out that if the government’s theory were accepted, there would be no limit to federal reach. “Under the government’s logic, Congress may criminalize nearly any at-home conduct only because it has the possibility of concealing taxable activity,” the court warned, suggesting that even remote work or home-based businesses could theoretically be banned under such a precedent.
Ultimately, the court characterized the ban as a “police regulation,” a type of power typically reserved for the states rather than the federal government.
The decision affirmed the district court’s conclusion that the statutes, 26 U.S.C. §§ 5178(a)(1)(B) and 5601(a)(6), are unconstitutional. This ruling clears the legal path for hobbyists within the Fifth Circuit’s jurisdiction—covering Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi—to engage in at-home distilling without the fear of federal criminal penalties, provided they follow other applicable state laws.
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