(a) Requirements. – To be eligible to receive and to hold an ABC permit, a person must satisfy all of the following requirements:

(1) Be at least 21 years old.

Terms Used In North Carolina General Statutes 18B-900

  • Alcoholic beverage: means any beverage containing at least one-half of one percent (0. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • Attorney-in-fact: A person who, acting as an agent, is given written authorization by another person to transact business for him (her) out of court.
  • Commission: means the North Carolina Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission established under N. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
  • Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
  • following: when used by way of reference to any section of a statute, shall be construed to mean the section next preceding or next following that in which such reference is made; unless when some other section is expressly designated in such reference. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
  • Fortified wine: means any wine or alcohol consumable containing more than sixteen percent (16%) and no more than twenty-four percent (24%) alcohol by volume, made by fermentation from grapes, fruits, berries, rice, or honey; or by the addition of pure cane, beet, or dextrose sugar; or by the addition of pure brandy from the same type of grape, fruit, berry, rice, or honey that is contained in the base wine and produced in accordance with the regulations of the United States. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • liquor: means distilled spirits or ethyl alcohol, and any alcohol consumable containing distilled spirits or ethyl alcohol, including spirits of wine, whiskey, rum, brandy, gin and all other distilled spirits and mixtures of cordials, liqueur, and premixed cocktails, in closed containers regardless of their dilution. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • Malt beverage: means beer, lager, malt liquor, ale, porter, and any other brewed or fermented beverage or alcohol consumable except unfortified or fortified wine as defined by this Chapter, containing at least one-half of one percent (0. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • Nolo contendere: No contest-has the same effect as a plea of guilty, as far as the criminal sentence is concerned, but may not be considered as an admission of guilt for any other purpose.
  • Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
  • permit: means a presently valid permit. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • permits: means any written or printed authorization issued by the Commission pursuant to the provisions of this Chapter. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • Person: means an individual, firm, partnership, association, corporation, limited liability company, other organization or group, or other combination of individuals acting as a unit. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • Plea: In a criminal case, the defendant's statement pleading "guilty" or "not guilty" in answer to the charges, a declaration made in open court.
  • Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. Source: OCC
  • Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
  • state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, shall be construed to extend to and include the District of Columbia and the several territories, so called; and the words "United States" shall be construed to include the said district and territories and all dependencies. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
  • Unfortified wine: means any wine or alcohol consumable containing sixteen percent (16%) or less alcohol by volume made by fermentation from grapes, fruits, berries, rice, or honey; or by the addition of pure cane, beet, or dextrose sugar; or by the addition of pure brandy from the same type of grape, fruit, berry, rice, or honey that is contained in the base wine and produced in accordance with the regulations of the United States. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101

(2) Be a resident of North Carolina, unless any of the following apply:

a. The person is an officer, director, or stockholder of a corporate applicant or permittee and is not a manager or otherwise responsible for the day-to-day operation of the business.

b. The person has executed a power of attorney designating a qualified resident of this State to serve as attorney in fact for the purposes of receiving service of process and managing the business for which permits are sought.

c. The person is applying for a nonresident malt beverage vendor permit, a nonresident wine vendor permit, a nonresident spirituous liquor vendor permit, or a vendor representative permit.

(3) Not have been convicted of a felony within three years, and, if convicted of a felony before then, have had his or her citizenship restored.

(4) Not have been convicted of an alcoholic beverage offense within two years.

(5) Not have been convicted of a misdemeanor controlled substance offense within two years.

(6) Not have had an alcoholic beverage permit revoked within three years, except where the revocation was based solely on a permittee’s failure to pay the annual registration and inspection fee required in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 18B-903(b1).

(7) Not have, whether as an individual or as an officer, director, shareholder or manager of a corporate permittee, an unsatisfied outstanding final judgment that was entered against him or her in an action under Article 1A of this Chapter.

(8) Be current in filing all applicable tax returns to the State and in payment of all taxes, interest, and penalties that are collectible under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 105-241.22 This subdivision does not apply to the following ABC permits:

a. Special occasion permit under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 18B-1001(8).

b. Limited special occasion permit under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 18B-1001(9).

c. Special one-time permit under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 18B-1002

d. Salesman permit under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 18B-1111

To avoid undue hardship, however, the Commission may decline to take action under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 18B-104 against a permittee who is in violation of subdivisions (3), (4), or (5) of this subsection.

(b) Definition of Conviction. – A person has been “convicted” for the purposes of subsection (a) of this section when the person has been found guilty, or has entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, and judgment has been entered. A felony conviction in another jurisdiction disqualifies a person from being eligible to receive or hold an ABC permit if the conduct would also constitute a felony in North Carolina. A conviction of an alcoholic beverage offense or misdemeanor drug offense in another jurisdiction disqualifies a person from being eligible to receive or hold an ABC permit if the conduct would constitute an offense in North Carolina, unless the Commission determines that under North Carolina procedure judgment would not have been entered under the same circumstances. Revocation of a permit in another jurisdiction disqualifies a person if the conduct would be grounds for revocation in North Carolina.

(c) Who Must Qualify; Exceptions. – For an ABC permit to be issued to and held for a business, each of the following persons associated with that business must qualify under subsection (a) of this section:

(1) The owner of a sole proprietorship.

(2) Each member of a firm, association, or general partnership.

(2a) Each general partner in a limited partnership.

(2b) Each manager and any member with a twenty-five percent (25%) or greater interest in a limited liability company.

(3) Each officer, director, and owner of twenty-five percent (25%) or more of the stock of a corporation except that the requirement of subdivision (a)(1) does not apply to the officer, director, or stockholder unless he or she is a manager or is otherwise responsible for the day-to-day operation of the business.

(4) The manager of an establishment operated by a corporation.

(5) Any manager who has been empowered as attorney-in-fact for a nonresident individual or partnership.

(6) Any manager or person otherwise responsible for the day-to-day operation of the business, if none of the persons listed in subdivisions (1) through (5) of this subsection is a manager or person otherwise responsible for the day-to-day operation of the business.

(d) Manager of Off-Premises Establishment. – Although the manager of an establishment operated by a corporation and holding off-premises permits for malt beverages, unfortified wine, or fortified wine is not otherwise required to meet the requirements of this section, the manager must be at least 19 years old and must meet the requirements of subdivisions (3), (4), (5) and (6) of subsection (a) of this section.

(e) Convention Centers. – With the approval of the Commission, the manager of a convention center may contract with another person to provide food and beverages at conventions and banquets at the convention center, and that person may engage in the activities authorized by the convention center’s permit, under conditions set by the Commission. The person with whom the convention center contracts must meet the qualifications of this section.

(f) Procedure to Confirm State Tax Compliance. – Upon request of the Commission, the Department of Revenue must provide information to the Commission to confirm a person’s compliance with subdivision (a)(8) of this section. If the Department of Revenue notifies the Commission that a person is not in compliance, then the Commission shall not issue or renew the person’s permit until the Commission receives notice from the Department of Revenue that the person is in compliance. The requirement to pay all taxes, interest, and penalties may be satisfied by an operative agreement under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 105-237 covering any amounts that are collectible under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 105-241.22 Chapter 150B of the N.C. Gen. Stat. does not apply to a Commission action on issuance, suspension, or revocation of an ABC permit under subdivision (a)(8) of this section. (1949, c. 974, ss. 1, 2; 1963, c. 119; c. 426, s. 12; 1965, c. 326; 1971, c. 872, s. 1; 1973, c. 758, s. 2; c. 1012; 1975, c. 19, s. 5; 1977, c. 70, s. 19.1; c. 668, s. 3; c. 977, ss. 1, 2; 1979, c. 286, s. 4; 1981, c. 412, s. 2; c. 747, ss. 53, 54; 1981 (Reg. Sess., 1982), c. 1262, ss. 13, 14; 1983, c. 435, ss. 32, 39; 1987, c. 136, ss. 7, 8; 1993, c. 415, s. 10; 1995, c. 466, s. 6; 2004-203, s. 25(a); 2014-3, s. 10.1(a); 2019-49, s. 2; 2021-88, s. 4(b); 2021-150, s. 6.2(c).)

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