Concerning alcoholic beverage control

This bill relates to alcoholic beverage control. Under current law, in order to be issued a retail alcohol license to sell alcoholic beverages for consumption on the licensed premises by the department of revenue (department), an applicant must hold and maintain dramshop liability insurance covering the licensee and licensed premises. This requirement does not apply to retail alcohol licensees that sell alcoholic beverages for consumption off of the licensed premises. The purpose of dramshop liability insurance is to provide protection for members of the public who experience damages as a result of licensees serving patrons any alcoholic beverage to a point that reaches or exceeds the standard set forth in law for liability. The bill eliminates the dramshop liability insurance requirement and the associated statutory liability of a licensee who sold or served an alcoholic beverage directly to a visibly intoxicated person. Instead, such licensees must, as part of the retail alcohol license application, submit proof of a commercial general liability insurance policy submitted in a manner and in an amount as determined by the department. Under current law, a person holding a retail alcohol license to sell alcoholic beverages for consumption on the licensed premises may permit a customer to carry an open container of wine from the person’s licensed premises into another immediately adjacent licensed premises that is covered by a license or permit that authorizes the consumption of wine, a temporarily closed public right-of-way, or a private place. The bill allows a licensee to permit a customer to carry any alcoholic beverage in an open container to an immediately adjacent licensed premises authorized to sell the same type of alcoholic beverage for consumption on the licensed premises, a temporarily closed public right-of-way, or a private place. The bill allows the licensee of the immediately adjacent licensed premises, or owner of the immediately adjacent private place, to refuse to allow the customer to enter the licensed premises or private place with an open container.3 defines “licensed premises” or “premises” to mean all rooms, enclosures, contiguous areas, or places susceptible of precise description satisfactory to the director of revenue where alcoholic beverages, wine, or beer is sold or consumed under authority of a retail alcohol license, wine permit, or beer permit. A single licensed premises may consist of multiple rooms, enclosures, areas, or places if they are wholly within the confines of a single building or contiguous grounds.3, any number of locations which are only separated from the premises by public waterways, roads, or carrier rights-of-way, any number of locations in the same general location as the premises, and an additional warehouse or warehouses located elsewhere, if approved by the alcohol and tobacco tax and trade bureau of the United States department of the treasury (bureau). Under current law, the following retail alcohol licenses may be issued to native manufacturers for the same premises where manufacturing occurs: a native distillery may be granted not more than two class “C” retail alcohol licenses, a native brewery may be granted not more than two class “C” retail alcohol licenses or two special class “C” retail alcohol licenses, and a native winery may be granted not more than two class “C” retail alcohol licenses or two special class “C” retail native wine licenses. A class “C” retail alcohol license allows for the sale and on-premises consumption of alcoholic liquor, wine, or beer and the sale of alcoholic liquor, wine, and beer in original unopened containers for consumption off the premises. A special class “C” retail alcohol license allows for the sale and consumption of wine and beer on the premises and the sale of wine and beer in original unopened containers for consumption off the premises. A special class “C” retail native wine license allows beer and native wine to be sold for on- or off-premises consumption. The bill allows native manufacturers to be issued not more than three of the currently authorized retail alcohol licenses. Under current law, a class “A” beer permit holder who also holds a brewer’s notice issued by the bureau, also known as a native brewery, is authorized to sell, at wholesale, no more than 30,000 barrels of beer on an annual basis to off-premises licensees. The bill increases this to no more than 38,000 barrels of beer. The bill imposes a manufacturing limit on a wine manufacturer that holds a class “A” wine permit and a basic permit issued by the bureau of no more than 150,000 gallons of wine annually. The bill eliminates the $10,000 bond requirement for class “A” beer permit holders and the $5,000 bond requirement for class “A” wine permit holders.