This Day in History: <br />FDR Signs the Beer <br />and Wine Revenue Act March 22, 1933 After 14 years of Prohibition, the Beer and <br />Wine Revenue Act finally allowed the sale <br />and government taxation of alcoholic <br />beverages with no more than 3.2% alcohol. The act was part of FDR's New Deal, <br />a series of economic measures intended <br />to pull America out of The Great Depression. It was one of his first <br />actions as president. It's passage signaled the repeal <br />of the 18th Amendment and the <br />Volstead Act, which prohibited <br />the sale of alcohol in the U.S. While a victory for the powerful <br />temperance movement, Prohibition <br />actually increased illegal trafficking of <br />alcohol and had little effect on its consumption. Later that year in December,<br />the 21st Amendment was passed, <br />bringing the era of Prohibition to an end.
