Lompoc Winery Proceeds With Lawsuit Against Santa Barbara County
LOMPOC, Calif. (KEYT) - A winery in Lompoc is going to court to stop.what it claims is an unconstitutional mandate from the county.
Flying Goat Cellars is suing the Board of Supervisors.
For the last year, a mandatory 1% assessment fee from direct-to-consumer sales transactions at wineries, stores and tasting rooms is going to the Santa Barbara County Vintner’s Association.
“We can go under the Fifth Amendment and, have that aspect of the constitutional question because they're taking our money, but not for the public good,” says Kate Griffith, co-owner of Flying Goat Cellars. “It's just for the benefit of this one association.”
The funding provided by the collected fees is designated for regional marketing at the local level.
“The Supreme Court has made it clear that governments cannot force individuals or businesses to fund or subsidize the speech of other private associations,” says Adam Shelton, senior attorney at the Goldwater Institute.
The owners of Flying Goat Cellars in Lompoc are pushing back against the mandate, saying membership with the vintner’s association must be voluntary according to law.
“Individuals and businesses have a right to associate and not associate,” says Shelton. “And here, Flying Goat is being forced by the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors to associate with the Santa Barbara County Vintner’s Association.”
“Over the years, Norm and I have found that we're not aligned with the Santa Barbara Vintners Association,” says Griffith. “We just are too far apart in our priorities and in our philosophies.”
There has been no response to the letter from the Board of Supervisors, nor from the Vintners Association, which Goldwater Institute attorney Adam Shelton says clears the way for the next logical step in the process.
“The fact that neither the Board of Supervisors nor the Vintner’s Association responded to our letter necessitated this lawsuit to ensure that their rights are protected and that the Constitution is respected,” says Shelton.
Both the County and Vintner’s Association say they cannot comment on pending litigation of an active legal matter.
“I will do whatever I can to prevent the government from forcing our affiliation with an organization that we don't want to join, as well as from taking money from our coffers for that organization,” says Griffith.
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