4-201

4-201. Licensing; application procedure in city,
town or county; burden of proof

A. A person desiring a license to manufacture, sell or deal in spirituous liquors
shall make application to the director on a form prescribed and furnished by the
director.

B. A person desiring a license within an incorporated city or town shall make the
application in triplicate and shall file the copies with the director. The director
shall remit two copies to the city or town clerk. The city or town clerk shall
immediately file one copy in the clerk's office and post the other for a period of twenty
days in a conspicuous place on the front of the premises where the business is proposed
to be conducted, with a statement requiring any person who is a bona fide resident
residing or owning or leasing property within a one mile radius from the premises
proposed to be licensed, and who is in favor of or opposed to the issuance of the
license, to file written arguments in favor of or opposed to issuance of the license with
the clerk within twenty days after the date of posting. The posting shall contain
substantially the following:

Notice

A hearing on a liquor license application shall be held before the local
governing body at the following date, time and place:

(Insert date, time and address)

The local governing body will recommend to the state liquor board whether the
board should grant or deny the license. The state liquor board may hold a
hearing to consider the recommendation of the local governing body. Any person
residing or owning or leasing property within a one-mile radius may contact
the state liquor board in writing to register as a protestor. To request
information regarding procedures before the board and notice of any board
hearings regarding this application, contact the state liquor board at:

(Insert address and telephone number).

No arguments shall be filed or accepted by the city or town clerk thereafter. This
subsection shall not be construed to prevent a bona fide resident residing or owning or
leasing property within a one-mile radius from the premises proposed to be licensed from
testifying in favor of or in opposition to the issuance of the license, regardless of
whether or not the person is a user or nonuser of spirituous liquor.

C. The governing body of the city, town or county shall then enter an order
recommending approval or disapproval within sixty days after filing of the application
and shall file a certified copy of the order with the director. If the recommendation is
for disapproval, a statement of the specific reasons containing a summary of the
testimony or other evidence supporting the recommendation for disapproval shall be
attached to the order. All petitions submitted to the governing body within the
twenty-day period for filing protests shall be transmitted to the director with the
certified copy of the order.

D. If a person applies for a license to conduct a spirituous liquor business
outside an incorporated city or town, the director shall remit two copies of the
application to the clerk of the board of supervisors of the county where the applicant
desires to do business, and the proceedings by the clerk and board of supervisors shall
be as provided for cities and towns.

E. Upon receipt of an application for a spirituous liquor license, the director
shall set the application for hearing by the board upon a date following the expiration
of the time fixed for the submitting of the certified order by the governing body of the
city or town or the board of supervisors. If the city or town or the county recommends
approval of the license no hearing is required unless the director, the board or any
aggrieved party requests a hearing on the grounds that the public convenience and the
best interest of the community will not be substantially served if a license is issued.
Any person residing or owning or leasing property within a one mile radius of the
proposed location may file a written protest with the director no later than fifteen
calendar days following action by the local governing body or sixty days after filing the
application. If no hearing is requested by the director, the board or any aggrieved
party, the application may be approved by the director. If the recommendation is for
disapproval of an application or if no recommendation is received, the board shall hold a
hearing. If the city, town or county recommends approval of the license pursuant to
subsection C, the director may cancel the hearing and issue the license unless the board
or any aggrieved party requests a hearing. The certified order, the reasons contained in
the order and the summary of the testimony and other evidence supporting the city, town
or county disapproval of the recommendation shall be read into the record before the
board and shall be considered as evidence by the board. The board shall consider the
certified order together with other facts and a report of the director relating to the
qualifications of the applicant. If the governing body of the city or town or the board
of supervisors fails to return to the director, as provided in subsections C and D, its
order of approval or disapproval, the board shall proceed with further consideration of
the application by holding an administrative hearing. An application shall be approved or
disapproved within one hundred five days after filing of the application.

F. A hearing may be conducted by an administrative law judge at the request of the
board to make findings and recommendations for use by the board in determining whether to
grant or deny a license. The administrative law judge shall submit a report of findings
to the board within twenty days of the hearing. The board may affirm, reverse, adopt,
modify, supplement, amend or reject the administrative law judge's report in whole or in
part.

G. In all proceedings before the governing body of a city or town, the board of
supervisors of a county or the board, the applicant bears the burden of showing that the
public convenience requires and that the best interest of the community will be
substantially served by the issuance of a license.

H. In order to prevent the proliferation of spirituous liquor licenses the
department may deny a license to a business on the grounds that such business is
inappropriate for the sale of spirituous liquor. An inappropriate business is one that
cannot clearly demonstrate that the sale of spirituous liquor is directly connected to
its primary purpose and that the sale of spirituous liquor is not merely incidental to
its primary purpose.

I. The board shall adopt, by rule, guidelines setting forth criteria for use in
determining whether the public convenience requires and the best interest of the
community will be substantially served by the issuance or transfer of a liquor license at
the location applied for. These guidelines shall govern the recommendations and other
approvals of the department and the local governing authority.

J. If the governing body of a city or town recommends disapproval by a two-thirds
vote of the members present and voting on an application for the issuance or transfer of
a spirituous liquor license that, if approved, would result in a license being issued at
a location either having no license or having a license of a different series, the
application shall not be approved unless the board decides to approve the application by
a two-thirds vote of the members present and voting.