SENATE BILL No. 147

 

 

February 2, 2005, Introduced by Senator CLARKE and referred to the Committee on Economic Development, Small Business and Regulatory Reform.

 

 

 

 

     A bill to amend 1998 PA 58, entitled

 

"Michigan liquor control code of 1998,"

 

by amending sections 113 and 525 (MCL 436.1113 and 436.1525),

 

section 525 as amended by 2004 PA 266, and by adding sections 309

 

and 311.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 113. (1) "Tavern" means any place licensed to sell at

 

retail beer and wine for consumption on the premises only.

 

     (2) "Vehicle" means any means of transportation by land, by

 

water, or by air.

 

     (3) "Vendor" means a person licensed by the commission to sell

 

alcoholic liquor.

 

     (4) "Vendor of spirits" means a person selling spirits to the

 


commission.

 

     (5) "Warehouse" means a premises or place primarily

 

constructed, used, or provided with facilities for the storage in

 

transit or other temporary storage of perishable goods or for the

 

conduct of a warehousing business, or for both.

 

     (6) "Warehouser" means a licensee authorized by the commission

 

to store alcoholic beverages liquor, but prohibited from making

 

sales or deliveries to retailers unless the licensee is also the

 

holder of a wholesaler or manufacturer license issued by the

 

commission.

 

     (7) "Wholesaler" means a person who sells beer, wine, or mixed

 

spirit drink only to retailers or other licensees, and who sells

 

sacramental wine as provided in section 301.

 

     (8) "Wine" means the product made by the normal alcoholic

 

fermentation of the juice of sound, ripe grapes, or any other fruit

 

with the usual cellar treatment, and containing not more than 21%

 

of alcohol by volume, including fermented fruit juices other than

 

grapes and mixed wine drinks.

 

     (9) "Wine maker" means any person licensed by the commission

 

to manufacture wine and sell, at wholesale or retail, wine

 

manufactured by that person.

 

     (10) "Wine pub" means a license issued in conjunction with a

 

class C, tavern, class A hotel, or class B hotel license that

 

authorizes the person licensed with the class C, tavern, class A

 

hotel, or class B hotel to manufacture wine and sell at those

 

licensed premises the wine produced for consumption on or off the

 

licensed premises in the manner provided for in sections 309 and

 


311.

 

     Sec. 309. (1) Subject to section 311, the commission shall

 

issue a wine pub license to a person who is licensed as a food

 

service establishment under the food law of 2000, 2000 PA 92, MCL

 

289.1101 to 289.8111, and who at the time of application for the

 

wine pub license is licensed and continues to be licensed as 1 or

 

more of the following:

 

     (a) Class C.

 

     (b) Tavern.

 

     (c) Class A hotel.

 

     (d) Class B hotel.

 

     (2) A wine pub shall possess the necessary equipment for a

 

satisfactory operation and maintain it in good working order and in

 

a sanitary condition.

 

     (3) A manufacturer shall comply with state law and with rules

 

promulgated by the department of agriculture in processing

 

agricultural products.

 

     (4) A wine pub shall not sell wine in this state unless it

 

provides for each brand or type of wine sold a label that

 

truthfully describes the content of each container.

 

     (5) A wine pub shall apply for and obtain a license for each

 

location of that wine pub.

 

     (6) Each wine pub shall submit to the commission, on forms

 

acceptable to the commission and postmarked not later than January

 

15, April 15, July 15, and October 15 of each year, a wine tax

 

report of all wine sold under their wine pub license during the

 

preceding quarter.

 


     Sec. 311. (1) The commission shall grant a wine pub license to

 

a person who, in addition to complying with section 309, does all

 

of the following:

 

     (a) Pays the fee as prescribed in section 525.

 

     (b) Provides evidence to the commission that not less than 25%

 

of the gross sales of the restaurant during the 1-year licensure

 

period are derived from the sale of food and nonalcoholic beverages

 

prepared for consumption on the premises.

 

     (c) Complies with section 309(3) through (6).

 

     (2) The commission shall renew a wine pub license of a person

 

who does all of the following:

 

     (a) Pays the fee as prescribed in section 525.

 

     (b) Provides evidence to the commission that not less than 25%

 

of the gross sales of the restaurant during the 1-year licensure

 

period are derived from the sale of food and nonalcoholic beverages

 

prepared for consumption on the premises.

 

     (c) Complies with section 309(3) through (6).

 

     (3) The commission shall revoke a wine pub license if, during

 

the 1-year licensure period, less than 25% of the gross sales of

 

the restaurant are derived from the sale of food and nonalcoholic

 

beverages prepared for consumption on the premises.

 

     Sec. 525. (1) Except as otherwise provided for in this

 

section, the following license fees shall be paid at the time of

 

filing applications or as otherwise provided in this act:

 

     (a) Manufacturers of spirits, but not including makers,

 

blenders, and rectifiers of wines containing 21% or less alcohol by

 

volume, $1,000.00.

 


     (b) Manufacturers of beer, $50.00 per 1,000 barrels, or

 

fraction of a barrel, production annually with a maximum fee of

 

$1,000.00, and in addition $50.00 for each motor vehicle used in

 

delivery to retail licensees. A fee increase does not apply to a

 

manufacturer of less than 15,000 barrels production per year.

 

     (c) Outstate seller of beer, delivering or selling beer in

 

this state, $1,000.00.

 

     (d) Wine makers, blenders, and rectifiers of wine, including

 

makers, blenders, and rectifiers of wines containing 21% or less

 

alcohol by volume, $100.00. The small wine maker license fee is

 

$25.00.

 

     (e) Outstate seller of wine, delivering or selling wine in

 

this state, $300.00.

 

     (f) Outstate seller of mixed spirit drink, delivering or

 

selling mixed spirit drink in this state, $300.00.

 

     (g) Dining cars or other railroad or Pullman cars selling

 

alcoholic liquor, $100.00 per train.

 

     (h) Wholesale vendors other than manufacturers of beer,

 

$300.00 for the first motor vehicle used in delivery to retail

 

licensees and $50.00 for each additional motor vehicle used in

 

delivery to retail licensees.

 

     (i) Watercraft, licensed to carry passengers, selling

 

alcoholic liquor, a minimum fee of $100.00 and a maximum fee of

 

$500.00 per year computed on the basis of $1.00 per person per

 

passenger capacity.

 

     (j) Specially designated merchants, for selling beer or wine

 

for consumption off the premises only but not at wholesale, $100.00

 


for each location regardless of the fact that the location may be a

 

part of a system or chain of merchandising.

 

     (k) Specially designated distributors licensed by the

 

commission to distribute spirits and mixed spirit drink in the

 

original package for the commission for consumption off the

 

premises, $150.00 per year, and an additional fee of $3.00 for each

 

$1,000.00 or major fraction of that amount in excess of $25,000.00

 

of the total retail value of merchandise purchased under each

 

license from the commission during the previous calendar year.

 

     (l) Hotels of class A selling beer and wine, a minimum fee of

 

$250.00 and, for all bedrooms in excess of 20, $1.00 for each

 

additional bedroom, but not more than $500.00.

 

     (m) Hotels of class B selling beer, wine, mixed spirit drink,

 

and spirits, a minimum fee of $600.00 and, for all bedrooms in

 

excess of 20, $3.00 for each additional bedroom. If a hotel of

 

class B sells beer, wine, mixed spirit drink, and spirits in more

 

than 1 public bar, the fee entitles the hotel to sell in only 1

 

public bar, other than a bedroom, and a license shall be secured

 

for each additional public bar, other than a bedroom, the fee for

 

which is $350.00.

 

     (n) Taverns, selling beer and wine, $250.00.

 

     (o) Class C license selling beer, wine, mixed spirit drink,

 

and spirits, $600.00. If a class C licensee sells beer, wine, mixed

 

spirit drink, and spirits in more than 1 bar, a fee of $350.00

 

shall be paid for each additional bar. In municipally owned or

 

supported facilities in which nonprofit organizations operate

 

concession stands, a fee of $100.00 shall be paid for each

 


additional bar.

 

     (p) Clubs selling beer, wine, mixed spirit drink, and spirits,

 

$300.00 for clubs having 150 or fewer duly accredited members and

 

$1.00 for each additional member. The membership list for the

 

purpose only of determining the license fees to be paid under this

 

section shall be the accredited list of members as determined by a

 

sworn affidavit 30 days before the closing of the license year.

 

This section does not prevent the commission from checking a

 

membership list and making its own determination from the list or

 

otherwise. The list of members and additional members is not

 

required of a club paying the maximum fee. The maximum fee shall

 

not exceed $750.00 for any 1 club.

 

     (q) Warehousers, to be fixed by the commission with a minimum

 

fee for each warehouse of $50.00.

 

     (r) Special licenses, a fee of $50.00 per day, except that the

 

fee for that license or permit issued to any bona fide nonprofit

 

association, duly organized and in continuous existence for 1 year

 

before the filing of its application, is $25.00. Not more than 5

 

special licenses may be granted to any organization, including an

 

auxiliary of the organization, in a calendar year.

 

     (s) Airlines licensed to carry passengers in this state that

 

sell, offer for sale, provide, or transport alcoholic liquor,

 

$600.00.

 

     (t) Brandy manufacturer, $100.00.

 

     (u) Mixed spirit drink manufacturer, $100.00.

 

     (v) Brewpub, $100.00.

 

     (w) Wine pub, $100.00.

 


     (x)   (w)  Class G-1, $1,000.00.

 

     (y)   (x)  Class G-2, $500.00.

 

     (2) The fees provided in this act for the various types of

 

licenses shall not be prorated for a portion of the effective

 

period of the license.

 

     (3) Beginning  the effective date of the amendatory act that

 

added this subsection  July 23, 2004, and except in the case of any

 

resort or resort economic development license issued under section

 

531(2), (3), (4), and (5) and a license issued under section 521,

 

the commission shall issue an initial or renewal license not later

 

than 90 days after the applicant files a completed application.

 

Receipt of the application is considered the date the application

 

is received by any agency or department of the state of Michigan.

 

If the application is considered incomplete by the commission, the

 

commission shall notify the applicant in writing, or make the

 

information electronically available, within 30 days after receipt

 

of the incomplete application, describing the deficiency and

 

requesting the additional information. The determination of the

 

completeness of an application does not operate as an approval of

 

the application for the license and does not confer eligibility

 

upon an applicant determined otherwise ineligible for issuance of a

 

license. The 90-day period is tolled under any of the following

 

circumstances:

 

     (a) Notice sent by the commission of a deficiency in the

 

application until the date all of the requested information is

 

received by the commission.

 

     (b) The time period during which actions required by a party

 


other than the applicant or the commission are completed that

 

include, but are not limited to, completion of construction or

 

renovation of the licensed premises; mandated inspections by the

 

commission or by any state, local, or federal agency; approval by

 

the legislative body of a local unit of government; criminal

 

history or criminal record checks; financial or court record

 

checks; or other actions mandated by this act or rule or as

 

otherwise mandated by law or local ordinance.

 

     (4) If the commission fails to issue or deny a license within

 

the time required by this section, the commission shall return the

 

license fee and shall reduce the license fee for the applicant's

 

next renewal application, if any, by 15%. The failure to issue a

 

license within the time required under this section does not allow

 

the department  commission to otherwise delay the processing of the

 

application, and that application, upon completion, shall be placed

 

in sequence with other completed applications received at that same

 

time. The commission shall not discriminate against an applicant in

 

the processing of the application based upon the fact that the

 

license fee was refunded or discounted under this subsection.

 

     (5) Beginning October 1, 2005, the chair of the commission

 

shall submit a report by December 1 of each year to the standing

 

committees and appropriations subcommittees of the senate and house

 

of representatives concerned with liquor license issues. The chair

 

of the commission shall include all of the following information in

 

the report concerning the preceding fiscal year:

 

     (a) The number of initial and renewal applications the

 

commission received and completed within the 90-day time period

 


described in subsection (3).

 

     (b) The number of applications denied.

 

     (c) The number of applicants not issued a license within the

 

90-day time period and the amount of money returned to licensees

 

under subsection (4).

 

     (6) As used in this section, "completed application" means an

 

application complete on its face and submitted with any applicable

 

licensing fees as well as any other information, records, approval,

 

security, or similar item required by law or rule from a local unit

 

of government, a federal agency, or a private entity but not from

 

another department or agency of the state of Michigan.