Bill > A2747

Introduced Session

This bill increases the number of plenary retail distribution licenses that a person may obtain for use in connection with certain retail food stores and liquor stores. Under current law, a person or corporate entity is prohibited from holding more than two retail licenses to sell alcoholic beverages. The bill provides that immediately following the bill's effective date the holder of a plenary retail distribution license would not be subject to the two-license limitation when those retail licenses are used in connection with a retail food store located within an urban food desert. An urban food desert is defined in current law as a municipality, or physically contiguous urban area in the State, in which residents have limited access to nutritious foods, such as fresh fruits and vegetables, through supermarkets, grocery stores, and farmers' markets. In addition, the bill provides that two years following the bill's effective date, a person may own or have an interest in a maximum of four retail licenses provided that two of those licenses are used in a qualifying retail food store or liquor store located throughout the State. Six years following the effective date of the bill, a person may hold not more than a total of six retail licenses provided that four of those licenses are used in a qualifying retail food store or liquor store located throughout the State. Under the bill, a qualifying retail food store is a retail store at which the sale of groceries and other food stuffs is the primary and principal business and constitutes at least 65 percent of the store's total annual sales. A qualifying liquor store is a store at which at least 90 percent of the store's annual sales are alcoholic beverages. Individuals who acquire more than two licenses under the provisions of the bill are required to pay a license transfer fee on each additional license that they acquire. The transfer fee is set at 10 percent of the amount the entity paid for the license and is payable to the municipality in which the licensed premises is situated. This transfer fee would not apply to the holder of a plenary retail distribution license used in connection with a retail food store located in an urban food desert. This bill would not increase the number of licenses that a municipality may issue based on population but, rather, increases the number of retail license that one person may hold.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Lou Greenwald (D)*,  Andrea Katz (D)*,  Carol Murphy (D)*,  Shavonda Sumter (D), 

Introduced, Referred to Assembly Oversight, Reform and Federal Relations Committee (on 01/09/2024)

Official Document