State explains alcohol rules to city officials

Clarendon city officials learned what they can and cannot do in terms of alcohol sales regulations during a called meeting with Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission representatives last Friday, January 11.

TABC Licensing Supervisor Kyle Russell explained several rules to the Mayor, Board of Aldermen, and City Secretary with the major points being that the city cannot enact ordinances more strict than the state code allows nor can the city be more lenient than the code allows.

While cities can choose to do nothing in terms of regulations, the state allows cities to prohibit businesses selling alcohol within 300 feet of a school, church, or public hospital. A city cannot make that distance 600 or 1,000 feet, Russell said. There is a state rule allowing for a 1,000-foot distance from schools, but that rule is only applicable to cities of populations greater than 900,000.

Alcohol permit applications in the city have to go through four basic steps before the TABC can consider them. They have to be signed by the county clerk and the state comptroller’s office, notice must be run two weeks in The Clarendon Enterprise, and the city secretary must sign off on the permits.

Businesses applying for on-premises consumption licenses must also post notice for 60 days at their place of business with a TABC-issued sign.

“I would post that sign today if I were even thinking about applying for an on-premises consumption license,” Russell said.

The role of the city should be an easy one, Russell said.

“It is not a difficult process for the city,” Russell said, noting that the city secretary simply certifies that the location is inside the city limits, that the location is “wet” for the type of permit being sought, and that alcohol sales for the type of permit being sought is not prohibited by ordinance.

Cities can opt to receive half of the state fee for alcohol permits, but they have to decide administratively how they will collect that money. The exception to this is that the city cannot collect any of the state fee for the first year of an establishment selling mixed beverages for on-premises consumption (restaurant or bar).

A mixed beverage permit carries a state fee of $6,000 plus a state surcharge of $602 the first year but then drops with each renewal until it reaches a $1,500 state fee and $602 state surcharge in the third renewal.

Russell said he anticipates receiving five to six alcohol permits from Clarendon with the most common being a “BQ” permit for the package sale of beer and wine, such as those being applied for by Lowe’s, CEFCO, and Allsup’s. The state fee for a two-year BQ permit is a $120 state fee plus a $553 state surcharge.

A restaurant selling beer and wine only requires a two-year permit that carries a $350 state fee plus a $553 state surcharge.

Applications can be protested and then reviewed by the county judge, Russell said. Any on-premises consumption permit application requires notice be given to residences within 300 feet, and any application within 1,000 feet of a school requires notice to be given to the school.

Alcohol permits expire after two years and must be displayed where the public can see them.

Russell said it takes about 40 days for TABC to approve a license once an application has been completed. Permits that are in the process at about the same time will all be issued on the same day, he said.

TABC encourages business owners and employees to take seller/server classes to learn the laws regarding selling and serving alcohol. Those businesses who complete such a course can receive “safe harbor” and receive more lenient punishment in case a violation occurs later.

Clarendon officials were preparing to meet on alcohol sales rules as the Enterprise went to press Tuesday.

Hedley officials met on the same topic last Thursday but took no. Hedley Mayor Leon Ward attended the meeting here Friday as did about dozen interested citizens.