PROPOSED RULES
Original Notice.
Preproposal statement of inquiry was filed as WSR 04-09-111.
Title of Rule and Other Identifying Information: WAC 314-02-105 Sampling in beer/wine specialty shops.
Hearing Location(s): Liquor Control Board, Board Room, 3000 Pacific Avenue S.E., Olympia, WA, on August 4, 2004, at 10:00 a.m.
Date of Intended Adoption: August 11, 2004.
Submit Written Comments to: Teresa Berntsen, Rules Coordinator, P.O. Box 43080, Olympia, WA 98504-3080, e-mail rules@liq.wa.gov, fax (360) 704-4921, by August 9, 2004.
Assistance for Persons with Disabilities: Contact Teresa Berntsen by August 3, 2004, TTY (800) 855-2880 or (360) 664-1648.
Purpose of the Proposal and Its Anticipated Effects, Including Any Changes in Existing Rules: This rule making is at the request of a petition for rule making. The petitioner would like the Liquor Control Board to amend WAC 314-02-105(4), which states that specialty shops can only offer samples if their gross retail sales of beer and/or wine are over 50% of their total gross sales. The petitioner would like the agency to amend the rule to allow beer/wine specialty shop licensees who offer bona fide cooking courses to be able to sample beer and/or wine during these classes.
Reasons Supporting Proposal: The Liquor Control Board would like to receive input on changing WAC 314-02-105 to allow beer/wine specialty shops to sample if:
• They meet the existing sales requirements, or
• They conduct bona fide cooking classes and wish to sample during the classes, under the guidelines in the proposed rule.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 66.08.030, 66.24.371.
Statute Being Implemented: RCW 66.24.371.
Rule is not necessitated by federal law, federal or state court decision.
Name of Proponent: Gretchen Pickett, owner, Gretchen's, private.
Name of Agency Personnel Responsible for Drafting: Teresa Berntsen, 3000 Pacific Avenue S.E., Olympia, WA, (360) 664-1648; Implementation: Lorraine Lee, 3000 Pacific Avenue S.E., Olympia, WA, (360) 664-1600; and Enforcement: Rick Phillips, 3000 Pacific Avenue S.E., Olympia, WA, (360) 664-1600.
No small business economic impact statement has been prepared under chapter 19.85 RCW. No economic impact to small businesses.
A cost-benefit analysis is not required under RCW 34.05.328. The Washington State Liquor Control Board is not a listed agency in RCW 34.05.328.
June 22, 2004
Merritt D. Long
Chairman
(2) The annual fee for this license is one hundred dollars.
(3) Qualifications for license -- To obtain and maintain a beer and/or wine specialty store license, the premises must be stocked with an inventory of beer and/or wine in excess of three thousand dollars wholesale value. This inventory must be:
(a) Stocked within the confines of the licensed premises; and
(b) Maintained on the premises at all times the premises is licensed, with the exception of beginning and closing inventory for seasonal operations or when the inventory is being sold out immediately prior to discontinuing or selling the business.
(4) Qualifications to sample -- A beer and/or wine
specialty store licensee may allow customers to sample beer
and wine for the purpose of sales promotion, if the primary
business is the sale of beer and/or wine at retail((.)), and
the licensee meets the requirements outlined in either
subsection (a) or subsection (b) of this rule:
(a) A licensee's gross retail sales of beer and/or wine
((must)) exceeds fifty percent of all gross sales for the
entire business((.)); or
(b) The licensed premises is a beer and/or wine specialty store that conducts bona fide cooking classes for the purpose of pairing beer and/or wine with food, under the following conditions:
(i) The licensee must establish to the satisfaction of the board that the classes are bona fide cooking courses. The licensee must charge participants a fee for the course(s).
(ii) The sampling must be limited to a clearly defined area of the premises.
(iii) The licensee must receive prior approval from the board's licensing and regulation division before conducting sampling with cooking classes.
(iv) Once approved for sampling, the licensee must provide the board's enforcement and education division a list of all scheduled cooking classes during which beer and/or wine samples will be served. The licensee must notify the board at least forty-eight hours in advance if classes are added.
(5) ((Sampling may be conducted)) Licensees who qualify
for sampling under subsection (4) of this rule may sample
under the following conditions:
(a) Each sample must be two ounces or less;
(b) No more than four samples may be provided to a customer during any one visit to the premises; and
(c) No more than one sample of any single brand and type of beer or wine may be provided to a customer during any one visit to the premises.
(((5))) (6) A beer and/or wine specialty store licensee
may sell beer in kegs or other containers holding at least
four gallons and less than five and one-half gallons of beer. See WAC 314-02-115 regarding keg registration requirements.
[Statutory Authority: RCW 66.08.030, 66.24.371. 04-07-020, § 314-02-105, filed 3/8/04, effective 4/8/04. Statutory Authority: RCW 66.08.030, 66.24.010, 66.24.120. 00-07-091, § 314-02-105, filed 3/15/00, effective 4/15/00.]
Reviser's note: RCW 34.05.395 requires the use of underlining and deletion marks to indicate amendments to existing rules. The rule published above varies from its predecessor in certain respects not indicated by the use of these markings.