Author: Edward A. Taraskus

This article was originally published in The Pennsylvania Observer / Pennsylvania Beverage Media in May 2022. A pdf version can be found here. Licensees are aware that in order to renew, transfer, or obtain a PLCB license both the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue and the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry each must issue tax clearances for the licensee. Therefore, the licensee or an applicant for a license has the obligation to be current in both the filing of tax reports and the payment of the taxes due that are associated with those reports. Without the clearances, the respective licenses…

This article was originally published in The Pennsylvania Observer / Pennsylvania Beverage Media in April 2022. A pdf version can be found here. I am selling my restaurant and the buyer would like to enter into a management agreement to operate my restaurant while the buyer’s PLCB transfer application is being processed. The buyer would receive the profits after my expenses. Can this be done? Yes. The liquor code currently legally permits management companies to have a financial interest in the licensee’s licensed business. A licensee can engage a management company to operate, manage, or supervise all or just a…

This article was originally published in the Pennsylvania Observer / Pennsylvania Beverage Media in March 2022. A pdf version can be found here. The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) mandated, pursuant to Governor Wolf’s Covid-19 emergency order, that licensees had to cease all consumption of alcohol and food on their licensed premises effective Wednesday March 18, 2020 at 8 P.M. However, sales of food, beer, and wine for off premises (take-out) consumption were still permitted. The PLCB then issued Advisory Notice 26 on March 18, 2020 to all license holders throughout Pennsylvania. The advisory notice listed the retail license types…

This article was originally published in The Pennsylvania Observer / Pennsylvania Beverage Media in February 2022. A pdf version can be found here. Licensees often become involved in civil lawsuits for allegedly serving a patron too much alcohol. These lawsuits are generally referred to as “dram shop” lawsuits. There are steps that licensees should take once they have received a notice of a claim. These steps apply to all lawsuits. Your very first acts should be to put your insurance company on notice and hire an attorney as soon as you become aware of a potential claim (immediately after you…

This article was originally published in The Pennsylvania Observer / Pennsylvania Beverage Media in January 2022.  A pdf version can be found here. Governor Wolf signed House Bill Number 425, now known as Act 81 of 2021, into law on November 5. This law is now in effect until December 31, 2024 and temporarily amends the Liquor Code regarding several provisions, which are intended to give licensees some economic help during the health crisis. I reviewed the change in the law relative to off-premise catering permits in my previous column. Another change in the law involves the use of the…

The hospitality industry continues to struggle financially during the national COVID-19 health crisis and the government’s attempts to control the spread of the deadly virus. The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board issued an updated guidance regarding the Governor’s various orders on January 4th, 2021 to all licensees. One topic covered by the updated guidance are the guidelines for the resumption of indoor dining and the service of alcoholic beverages, which restaurant licensees must strictly follow. Licensees who are offering indoor seating for dining and desiring to sell alcohol beverages must provide a meal for consumption on the premises in order to…

Licensees are aware that in order to renew, transfer, or obtain a PLCB license both the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue and the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry each must issue tax clearances for the licensee. Therefore the licensee has the obligation to be current in both the filing of tax reports and the payment of the taxes due that are associated with those reports. Without the clearances, the respective licenses will not be renewed, validated, and any transfer application or an application for a new license will not be approved. Licensees experiencing financial difficulties with the payment of their…

Q. My corporation has a restaurant liquor license, and I have had two (2) citations involving amplified music being heard outside of my premises within the past year. I have a live music venue and neighbors have been complaining to the State Police about hearing the music. The PLCB has sent me a letter objecting to the renewal of my amusement permit claiming I abused my licensing privileges because of the two citations. Can the Board legally do this? I have also been listed as not being reputable because of the music citations. A. The Pennsylvania Liquor Code makes it…

Each type of license issued by the PLCB has specific legal requirements that must be complied with in order to qualify for the license to be issued to the license applicant. For example a holder of a restaurant liquor license must have on its premises seating for 30 patrons, food on the premises to feed 30 patrons, utensils, dishes etc. to serve the food, and a valid, current health license/permit issued to the premises by the local municipal authority, and the licensed premises must presently consist of a minimum area of 400 square feet. The license holder must continue to…

The recent changes to the Liquor Code has increased the number of the Off Premises Catering Permits that a qualified licensee can obtain in a calendar year from 50 to 52. This obviously is not by any standard a significant increase. However the overall procedural process has been amended to benefit licensees. The PLCB has more discretion when accepting permit applications, and when licensees have to provide notice of the scheduled events. Previously licensees had to file for the permit by March 1. This was a strict deadline and the PLCB legally could not accept applications past that date. Now…

Licensees are still being cited for sales to minors as a result of Pennsylvania’s Age Compliance Program, which is administered by the State Police Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement. I have written about this program in past columns and is worth revisiting since the sales or the furnishing of alcohol to minors is one of the most serious violations that a licensee can have on its record. The idea of the Age Compliance Program is to check on PLCB licensed establishments to see if they are complying with the law, and to see if they are using a proper age…

Note this clarification: A WEP licensee may not sell its wine for a lower price than what the WEP holder purchased that wine for at a PLCB store and not the PLCB store retail list price.

Liquor Licenses holding a Wine Expanded Permit (WEP) are required to use a transactional scanning device to check, legally acceptable identification cards as proof of age of all patrons appearing to be under the age of 35 years, who want to purchase wine-to-go. Patrons 21 years or older of age can legally purchase wine, but WEP holders must still use the transactional device for all patrons appearing to be under 35 years of age. The wording of the statute restricts WEP licensees to accepting as proof of age only those ID’s that can be scanned using the transactional device, which…

Act 39, which amended the Liquor Code went into effect August 8, 2016. One purpose of the law is to expand the availability of alcoholic beverages and thus increase the convenience factor for the retail consumer. This increase in the availability of alcoholic beverages also creates new opportunities for licensees. This enlarging of the number of outlets in which to legally obtain alcoholic beverages comes with new regulations however. One of the new business opportunities for licensees created by Act 39, which amended the Liquor Code is the wine expanded permit, also known as WEP, or a “wine to go…

Clients always ask me what hours can they legally be open and sell alcoholic beverages on Sundays. There are 23,481 licenses issued in Pennsylvania and the answer depends upon what specific type of license that a licensee holds, and you must be aware of those hourly restrictions. Restaurant and hotel liquor licensees and retail dispenser licensees with Sunday sales permits may dispense alcohol between 11 A.M. Sunday and 2 A.M. Monday. However a licensee with a Sunday sales permit may begin dispensing alcohol at 9 A.M., provided the licensee offers a meal beginning at 9:00 A.M. Airport Restaurant Liquor (AR)…