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ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE REGULATION ADMINISTRATION
ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE CONTROL BOARD
NOTICE OF FINAL RULEMAKING
The Alcoholic Beverage Control Board (Board), pursuant to the authority set forth in D.C. Official Code §§ 25-211(b) and Mayor’s Order 2001-96 (June 28, 2001) as revised by Mayor’s Order 2001-102 (July 23, 2001), hereby gives notice of its intent to adopt the following amendments to Chapter 7 (General Operating Requirements) of Title 23 (Alcoholic Beverages), which make clear that the sale of beer in growlers by brew pub permit holders, and the sale of wine by wine pub permit holders, for off-premises consumption, is limited to the hours between 7:00 A.M. and midnight seven days a week.
The Omnibus Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Emergency Amendment Act of 2012 (Act), effective May 1, 2013 (D.C. Law 19-310; 60 DCR 3410), as amended, created a new Section 25-124 of Title 25 of the D.C. Official Code, setting forth wine pub permit requirements and qualifications. Subsection (d) provides that the holder of a wine pub permit may also sell wine to patrons in sealed bottles or other closed containers for off-premises consumption. The Act also amends Section 25-117 of Title 25 of the D.C. Official Code to allow brew pub permit holders to sell beer in growlers for off-premises consumption. However, the Act does not indicate what the legal hours are for the sale of wine by wine pub permit holders, and beer in growlers by brew pub permit holders for off-premises consumption.
These rules were originally adopted by the Board on an emergency basis on January 16, 2013 by a five (5) to zero (0) vote. The emergency action was necessary because the new Act is silent on the permitted hours of sale by wine pub and brew pub permit holders for off-premises consumption, and these emergency rules make clear that sales may not begin before 7:00 a.m., and must end daily by midnight.
The rules were published in the D.C. Register as a Notice of Emergency and Proposed Rulemaking on February 8, 2013 at 60 DCR 1589. Pursuant to D.C. Official Code § 25-211(b)(2) (2012 Supp.), the proposed rules were transmitted to the Council of the District of Columbia (Council), for a ninety (90) day period of Council review on April 18, 2013. The proposed rules were approved by Council Resolution, R20-182, the “Brew Pub and Wine Pub Hours Rules Approval Resolution of 2013”, adopted by the Council at its June 26, 2013 legislative meeting. These final rules were adopted by the Board on July 31, 2013, on a vote of five (5) to zero (0) and they will become effective five (5) days after publication in the D.C. Register.
Title 23 of the D.C. Municipal Regulations is amended as follows:
Section 705, HOURS OF SALE AND DELIVERY FOR OFF-PREMISES RETAIL LICENSEES, of Chapter 7, GENERAL OPERATING REQUIREMENTS, of Title 23, ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES, of the DCMR, is amended by adding a new Subsection 705.13 to read as follows:
705.13 The holder of a brew pub permit shall be permitted to sell beer in growlers to patrons for off-premise consumption between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and midnight. The holder of a wine pub permit shall be permitted to sell wine to patrons in sealed bottles or other closed containers for off-premise consumption between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and midnight.
