4-206.01. Bar, beer and wine bar or liquor store licenses; number permitted; fee; sampling privileges

A. The director shall determine the total number of spirituous liquor licenses by type and in each county. The director shall publish a listing of that information as determined by the director.

B. In each county, the director, each year, shall issue additional bar or liquor store licenses at the rate of one of each type for each additional ten thousand person increase over the population in that county as of July 1, 2010. For every license that has been revoked or reverted in any county, the director may issue a new license of the same series in the same county, except that if there are more than five licenses of a particular class, the director may issue five new licenses plus an additional number of new licenses equivalent to twenty percent of the difference between the number of revoked or reverted licenses per year and five. The director may waive the issuance of licenses in a county for one year where there has been no request made to the department for the issuance of a new license of that series. For the purposes of this subsection, the population of a county is deemed to be the population estimated by the office of economic opportunity as of July 1 of each year.

C. In each county, the director, each year, shall issue additional beer and wine bar licenses at the rate of one for each additional five thousand person increase over the population in that county as of July 1, 2010. Beginning January 1, 2022, in each county, the director, each year, shall issue additional beer and wine bar licenses at the rate of one for each additional ten thousand person increase over the population in that county as of July 1, 2010. For every license that has been revoked or reverted in any county, the director may issue a new license of the same series in the same county, except that if there are more than five licenses of a particular class, the director may issue five new licenses plus an additional number of new licenses equivalent to twenty percent of the difference between the number of revoked or reverted licenses per year and five. The director may waive the issuance of licenses in a county for one year if there has been no request made to the department for the issuance of a new license of that series. For the purposes of this subsection, the population of a county is deemed to be the population estimated as of July 1 of each year by the office of economic opportunity.

D. A person issued a license authorized by subsection B or C of this section shall pay an additional issuance fee equal to the license's fair market value that shall be paid to the state general fund. An appraisal shall be conducted to determine the fair market value of that license type in a specific county. The fair market value is defined to mean the price arrived at in good faith that a knowledgeable and willing buyer will pay and is computed by determining the average value, or weighted average value if there are trends in license pricing in that county, of licenses of the same type, free of any encumbrances, sold on the open market in the same county during the prior twelve months, but if there are not three or more sales then the fair market value is determined by two appraisals furnished to the department by independent professional appraisers employed by the director. The valuation method under both approaches shall take into account trends in the value of licenses of the specific type during the previous twelve months. A new license authorized pursuant to subsection B or C of this section may not be issued to a person or entity that has had a similar license revoked or reverted unless the person or entity provides the director with satisfactory proof that all previous liens on the revoked or reverted license have been satisfied in full.

E. The director shall employ professional appraisal services to determine the fair market value of bar, beer and wine bar or liquor store licenses.

F. If more than one person applies for an available license, a priority of applicants shall be determined by a random selection method prescribed by the director, except that the number of times that a person may enter the random selection process shall not exceed the number of licenses of that series that are available for issuance. For the purposes of this subsection, a partnership, limited liability company, association, company or corporation is considered the same person if it is owned, managed, operated or controlled by the same controlling person.

G. Bar licenses and beer and wine bar licenses shall be issued and used only if the clear primary purpose and actual primary use is for on-sale retailer privileges. The off-sale privileges associated with a bar license and a beer and wine bar license shall be limited to use, which is clearly auxiliary to the active primary on-sale privilege. A bar license or a beer and wine bar license shall not be issued or used if the associated off-sale use, by total retail spirituous liquor sales, exceeds thirty percent of the sales price of on-sale spirituous liquors by the licensee at that location. For dual licenses issued pursuant to a single site or where a second license is issued to a site that already has a spirituous liquor license, other than settlement licenses issued as provided by law, the applicant has the burden of establishing that public convenience and the best interest of the community will be served by the issuance of the license.

H. The director may issue a beer and wine store license to the holder of a beer and wine bar license simultaneously at the same premises. An applicant for a beer and wine bar license and a beer and wine store license may consolidate the application and may apply for both licenses at the same time. The holder of each license shall fully comply with this title. A beer and wine bar license and beer and wine store license on the same premises shall be owned by and issued to the same licensee.

I. The director may issue a beer and wine bar license to the holder of a liquor store license issued simultaneously at the same premises. An applicant for a liquor store license and a beer and wine bar license may consolidate the application and may apply for both licenses at the same time. The holder of each license shall fully comply with this title. A liquor store license and a beer and wine bar license on the same premises shall be owned by and issued to the same licensee.

J. The director may issue a restaurant license to the holder of a beer and wine bar license issued simultaneously at the same premises. An applicant for a restaurant license and a beer and wine bar license may consolidate the application and may apply for both licenses at the same time. The holder of each license shall fully comply with this title. A restaurant license and a beer and wine bar license on the same premises shall be owned by and issued to the same licensee. The limitation stated in subsection G of this section with respect to the off-sale privileges of the beer and wine bar licenses shall be measured against the on-sales of beer and wine sales of the establishment. For the purposes of compliance with section 4-205.02, subsection J, paragraph 2, it shall be conclusively presumed that all on-premises sales of spirituous liquors are made under the authority of the restaurant license.

K. An applicant for a liquor store license or a beer and wine store license and the licensee of a liquor store license or a beer and wine store license may apply for sampling privileges associated with the license. Beer and wine store premises containing less than five thousand square feet must dedicate at least seventy-five percent of retail shelf space to the sale of spirituous liquor in order to be eligible for sampling privileges. A person desiring a sampling privilege associated with a liquor store license shall apply to the director on a form prescribed and furnished by the director. The application for sampling privileges may be filed for an existing license or may be submitted with an initial license application. The request for sampling approval, the review of the application and the issuance of approval shall be conducted under the same procedures for the issuance of a spirituous liquor license prescribed in section 4-201. After a sampling privilege has been issued for a liquor store license or a beer and wine store license, the sampling privilege shall be noted on the license itself and in the records of the department. The sampling rights associated with a license are not transferable. The director may charge a fee for processing each application for sampling privileges and a renewal fee as provided in this section. A city or town shall not charge any fee relating to the issuance or renewal of a sampling privilege. Notwithstanding section 4-244, paragraph 19, a liquor store licensee or a beer and wine store licensee that holds a license with sampling privileges may provide spirituous liquor sampling subject to the following requirements:

1. Any open product shall be kept locked by the licensee when the sampling area is not staffed.

2. The licensee is otherwise subject to all other provisions of this title. The licensee is liable for any violation of this title committed in connection with the sampling.

3. The licensed retailer shall make sales of sampled products from the licensed retail premises.

4. The licensee shall not charge any customer for the sampling of any products, except that the licensee may charge a fee for bona fide educational classes conducted in a classroom by an instructor on the licensed premises where the sampling of any spirituous liquor product is incidental to the course taught and to the course materials presented.

5. The sampling shall be conducted under the supervision of an employee of a sponsoring distiller, vintner, brewer, wholesaler or retail licensee.

6. Accurate records of sampling products dispensed shall be retained by the licensee.

7. Sampling shall be limited to three ounces of beer or cooler-type products, one and one-half ounces of wine and one ounce of distilled spirits per person, per brand, per day.

8. The sampling shall be conducted only on the licensed premises.

L. If a beer and wine bar license and a beer and wine store license are issued at the same premises, for the purposes of reporting liquor purchases under each license, all spirituous beverages purchased for sampling are conclusively presumed to be purchased under the beer and wine bar license and all spirituous liquor sold off-sale are conclusively presumed to be purchased under the beer and wine store license.

M. The director may issue a beer and wine store license to the holder of a bar license simultaneously at the same premises. An applicant for a beer and wine store license and a bar license may consolidate the application and may apply for both licenses at the same time. The holder of each license shall fully comply with this title. A beer and wine store license and a bar license on the same premises shall be owned by and issued to the same licensee. If a beer and wine store license and a bar license are issued at the same premises, for purposes of reporting liquor purchases under each license, all off-sale beer and wine sales are conclusively presumed to be purchased under the beer and wine store license.