Bill > S1254

Introduced Session

This bill, designated as the Garden State Grocery Liquor Licensing Act, establishes a new retail alcoholic beverage license authorizing retail food stores to sell alcoholic beverages manufactured in this State for consumption off the licensed premises. The bill defines "retail food store" as any retail establishment where groceries and other foodstuffs are regularly and customarily sold in a bona fide manner for off-premises consumption and which constitute at least 65 percent of the store's total annual sales in dollars, and at which the sale of alcoholic beverages is merely incidental. Under the bill, alcoholic beverages may be displayed and sold in any location of the retail food store floor area where groceries and other foodstuffs are displayed and sold. The initial fee for the restricted retail food store license would be based on the square footage of the retail food store. The bill establishes an initial $5,000 fee for a retail food store with a gross square footage of less than 5,000; a $15,000 fee for a retail food store with a gross square footage between 5,000 and 20,000; and $30,000 fee for a retail food with a gross square footage of more than 20,000. The bill also establishes an annual renewal fee would of $1,000 regardless of the food store's square footage. Under the bill, 25 percent of the initial and annual fee would be allocated to the Director of the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control and the remaining 75 percent of the fee would be allocated to the governing body of the municipality in which the licensed premises is located. The bill also establishes a $1,000 annual renewal fee regardless of the food store's square footage to be divided equally between the division and the municipal governing body. The license would not be subject to the population limitation that restricts a municipality from issuing more than one plenary retail distribution license for every 7,500 persons residing in that municipality.

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Linda Greenstein (D)*, 

Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Law and Public Safety Committee (on 01/13/2026)

Official Document