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MLCC Holiday Hours
All MLCC offices (and all other State of Michigan offices) will be closed December 24 - 25 and December 31 - January 1. |
Congratulations toour Clients on their License Transfers & Recent Openings
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Dollar General
(Statewide)
Garden Party Store
(Livonia)
Grand Rapids Brewing Company
(Grand Rapids)
Kelly's Market
(Troy)
Kruse's Deer Lake Inn
(Independence Township)
Logan's Roadhouse
(Saginaw)
Maple Theater
(Bloomfield Township)
Morels
(Farmington Hills)
Steverino's Road House
(Emmett)
Tilted Kilt
(Novi)
Uphill 41
(Hancock )
Westland Char House
(Westland)
Rite Aid #3880
(Macomb Township)
DeTour Express Mart
(Detour)
Mike's Place
(Marshall)
Gourmet Village
(East Lansing)
Houlihan's
(Grand Rapids)
Tin Can
(Dewitt)
Ramada Hotel
(Delta Township)
Midtown Beer Company
(Lansing)
Outlaws' Bar & Grill
(Kalkaska)
Red Haven
(Okemos) |
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MLBA Legislative Retreat
February 4, 2013
Mt. Pleasant, MI
www.mlba.org
MLBA Board Meeting
February 5, 2013
Mt. Pleasant, MI
www.mlba.org
2013 Michigan Grape & Wine Conference
February 13-15, 2013
Kellogg Hotel &
Conference Center
East Lansing, MI |
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© Carlin Edwards Brown PLLC 2012. All rights reserved.
This newsletter provides general information and does not constitute legal advice in any way.
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Find industry updates on our website and blogwww.cebhlaw.com
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Carlin Edwards Brown PLLC
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"Successful 2012 Year Draws to a Close"
As we wrap up activity for 2012, and before we begin to tackle new challenges in 2013, we wanted to take this opportunity to thank all of our clients and the staff of the Michigan Liquor Control Commission ("MLCC") for a very successful year. Many positive changes have been made by the MLCC, with hopefully more to come. The list of new openings and license transfers shown in this newsletter is just a small sample of the many exciting projects we have had the pleasure to work on with our wonderful clients throughout the State of Michigan. We look forward to serving those clients for many years to come, and we will continue to provide the resources needed for Michigan liquor license holders to achieve success in this highly-regulated industry. |
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Holiday Alcohol Sales Hours
Christmas: On-Premises and Off-Premises Licensees - Do not sell alcoholic beverages (or allow any consumption) between 11:59 P.M. on December 24 and 12:00 Noon December 25. On-premises establishments can legally remain open until 2:00 A.M.; however no sale or consumption of alcoholic beverages may occur after 11:59 P.M. Off-premises establishments can remain open all hours for business other than the sale of alcoholic beverages. **Local governmental units may by ordinance prohibit the sale of alcoholic beverages on Christmas or any other legal holiday. Please check with us to see if your local jurisdiction has enacted such an ordinance.
New Year's Eve/Day: On-Premises Licensees - Do not sell alcohol beverages between 4:00 A.M. and 7:00 A.M. on New Year's Day. Consumption must cease by 4:30 A.M. and premises must be cleared by 4:30 A.M. of all non-employees unless the on-premises licensee has been granted a Specific Permit authorizing the premises to be occupied beyond the legal business hours.
Off-Premises Licensees - Normal sales hours apply, do not sell alcoholic beverages between 2:00 A.M. and 7:00 A.M. on New Year's Day. Premises may be open during these hours; however no alcoholic beverages may be sold. |
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ADA Holiday Delivery Schedule
Great Lakes Wine & Spirits
Christmas:
- No deliveries made Tuesday 12/25/12.
- Regular Monday deliveries will be made on Saturday 12/22/12.
- Regular Tuesday deliveries will be made on Monday 12/24/12.
- Wednesday - Friday deliveries will be made as normal.
New Year's Day:
- No deliveries made Tuesday 1/1/13.
- Regular Monday deliveries will be made Saturday 12/29/12.
- Regular Tuesday deliveries will be made Monday 12/31/12.
- Wednesday - Friday deliveries will be made as normal.
NWS Michigan, Inc.
Christmas:
- No deliveries made Tuesday 12/25/12.
- Normal deliveries will be made Monday 12/24/12.
- Regular Tuesday deliveries will be made on Wednesday 12/26/12.
- Regular Wednesday deliveries will be made on Thursday 12/27/12.
- Regular Thursday deliveries will be made on Friday 12/28/12.
- Regular Friday deliveries will be made on Saturday 12/29/12.
New Year's Day:
- No deliveries made Tuesday 1/1/13.
- Normal deliveries will be made Monday 12/31/12.
- Regular Tuesday deliveries will be made on Wednesday 1/2/13.
- Regular Wednesday deliveries will be made on Thursday 1/3/13.
- Regular Thursday deliveries will be made on Friday 1/4/13.
- Regular Friday deliveries will be made on Saturday 1/5/13.
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SDD Spirit Price Reduction Program
Effective January 1, 2013, the MLCC will alter the conditions and standards for SDD licensees requesting price reductions pursuant to MCL 436.1229(2). Among the many new conditions and procedures for price reductions are the following:
- SDD licensees may request price reductions for any spirit product sold by the Commission.
- Price reductions are limited to no more than 50% of the minimum retail selling price that is in effect at the time the price reduction is requested.
- Price reductions below $2.00 per bottle for any spirit product will not be approved by the Commission, regardless of the bottle's size.
Contact Rick Perkins at Carlin Edwards Brown PLLC (rperkins@cebhlaw.com) for assistance with filing spirit price reduction requests with the MLCC. |
Legislative Update
December 31, 2012 brings an end to Michigan's current two-year legislative cycle, meaning that any pending legislation not enacted by 12/31/12 will go by the wayside. Below are a few bills of interest that may or may not progress through the current legislative session but, with sufficient interest, may find their way back into the discussion through reintroduction of new Bills after January 1, 2013.
Conditional License (HB 5488) - Passed in House of Representatives (105-2) on 9/27/12
Amend Section 525 of the Liquor Control Code to require the MLCC to issue a 'Conditional License' within 14 business days upon submission of a completed application, acceptable Proof of Financial Responsibility and an executed property document. Proposed language does not make the Conditional License available to new on-premises licenses or new SDD license.
Redevelopment Project and Development District Licenses(HB 5877) - Passed in House of Representative (106-1) on 9/27/12
Expand Section 521a of the Liquor Control Code to allow for Redevelopment Project Area licenses and Development District licenses in townships and villages, as the MLCC interprets the current statutory language to limit these on-premises licenses to cities only.
Gas Pumps (SB 303, HB 4421 & HB 4457) - Introduced in Senate or House of Representatives on 3/24/11, 3/15/12 and 3/17/12 respectively
Amend Section 541 of the Liquor Control Code to reduce to minimum inventory requirement for off-premises SDM and SDD establishments operating gas stations to $20,000 (SB 303 & HB 4421) or $50,000 (HB 4457). |
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Advisory Rules Committee Reform Proposals May (Finally) Be Moving Forward
You may recall from our recent newsletters that the Advisory Rules Committee ("ARC") appointed by Governor Snyder's Office of Regulatory Reinvention proposed 64 recommendations for revamping Michigan's liquor control procedures, rules and statute. Michael Brown of our firm was one of the ARC members, and we were heavily involved in drafting many of the 64 proposals. The final draft of the ARC report was issued June 29, 2012, after several months of review by Governor Snyder's team.
During the past year, the Michigan Liquor Control Commission ("MLCC") has begun to implement many of the ARC recommendations that do not require prior legislative approval. For example, the MLCC has increased the use of e-mail correspondence with applicants, investigators, and local governing bodies to help speed up the licensing process. MLCC procedure has also eliminated the need for a final inspection by MLCC personnel to certify an applicant's compliance with local building, health and zoning regulations. Additionally, many MLCC permits are now available without the need for a full investigation and are issued normally within a few days of the request by using a "consent agenda" approach.
Many of the other proposed reforms, however, will require legislative change before being implemented by the MLCC. The MLCC could not move forward with certain ARC-proposed recommendations because it is bound by current statute in reviewing applications and conducting its investigations. Now that the 2012 election is behind us, and we know that the Governor's political party has retained control of both the Michigan House and Senate, many of those involved in the ARC process are expecting legislative action to amend the Liquor Control Code shortly after the New Year. We anticipate several significant liquor-related bills to emerge from the newly-constituted legislature as a means for implementing many of the 64 ARC recommendations that require legislative action. We will continue to monitor the legislation and provide an update in our next newsletter on matters that are of concern to our clients. Please feel free to contact us with your comments and suggestions as that legislative process unfolds in 2013. |
Local Approval Issues after MLCC Changes in Procedures
On June 21, 2012, the MLCC issued a bulletin outlining procedural changes pertaining to local units of government approval. Basically the MLCC declared that approval from local units of government (city, township, village) were required only for new on-premises licenses and certain new permits (Dance, Entertainment, Topless Activity, Extended Hours), and such approvals were no longer required for transfers of existing licenses.
This change in MLCC policy has resulted in different reactions from local units of government. Many governmental units willingly adopted MLCC's new procedures and essentially removed themselves from the liquor license approval process. However, other local units of government searched for ways to actively insert their involvement into the liquor licensing approval process by creating additional procedures, licenses, permits, fees, etc., resulting in an even more cumbersome process for applicants and licensees. Carlin Edwards Brown PLLC continues to actively work with local units of government and local law enforcement agencies to better assist clients in traversing the ever changing obstacles of the liquor licensing process. Please contact us to review the current licensing process in your jurisdiction. |
Political Advertising
The MLCC recently initiated action to rescind Administrative Rule R436.1335, which regulates political advertising on the inside or outside of licensed premises because the Rule is obsolete. In view of this action, the MLCC announced that there will be no enforcement of the Rule's prohibition on displaying political advertising that advocates the election of a person of political party. |
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