COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
H. B. 3138
(By Delegates Webster, Moore, Proudfoot, Pino, Shook,
Fleischauer, Stemple, Mahan, Brown, Tabb and Guthrie)
(Originating in the Committee on the Judiciary)
[February 22, 2007]
A BILL to amend and reenact §11-16-8 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended; and to amend and reenact §60-7-4 of said
code, all relating to increasing the safety of patrons in
private clubs and taverns by requiring such licensees to
maintain a minimum amount of general liability and liquor
liability insurance coverage to cover liabilities related to
running a business and liabilities related to running a
business that serves alcoholic liquors or nonintoxicating
beer, or that serves both.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §11-16-8 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted; and §60-7-4 of said code, be amended and
reenacted, all to read as follows:
CHAPTER 11. TAXATION.
ARTICLE 16.NONINTOXICATING BEER.
§11-16-8. Form of application for license; fee and bond; refusal of license.
(a) A license may be issued by the commissioner to any person
who submits an application therefor, accompanied by a license fee,
and, where required, a bond, stating under oath:
(1) The name and residence of the applicant, the duration of
such residency, that the applicant has been a resident of the state
for a period of two years next preceding the date of the
application and that the applicant is twenty-one years of age. If
the applicant is a firm, association, partnership, limited
partnership or corporation, the application shall include the
residence of the members or officers for a period of two years next
preceding the date of such application:
Provided, That if any
person, firm, partnership, limited partnership, association or
corporation applies for a license as a distributor, such person, or
in the case of a firm, partnership, limited partnership or
association, the members or officers thereof shall state under oath
that each has been a bona fide resident of the state for four years
preceding the date of such application;
(2) The place of birth of applicant, that he or she is a
citizen of the United States and of good moral character and, if a
naturalized citizen, when and where naturalized; and, if a
corporation organized or authorized to do business under the laws
of the state, when and where incorporated, with the name and
address of each officer; that each officer is a citizen of the United States and a person of good moral character; and if a firm,
association, partnership or limited partnership, the place of birth
of each member of the firm, association, partnership or limited
partnership, and that each member is a citizen of the United States
and if a naturalized citizen, when and where naturalized, each of
whom must qualify and sign the application:
Provided, That the
requirements as to residence shall not apply to the officers of a
corporation which shall apply for a retailer's license, but the
officers, agent, or employee who shall manage and be in charge of
the licensed premises shall possess all of the qualifications
required of an individual applicant for a retailer's license,
including the requirement as to residence;
(3) The particular place for which the license is desired and
a detailed description thereof;
(4) The name of the owner of the building and, if the owner is
not the applicant, that such applicant is the actual and bona fide
lessee of the premises;
(5) That the place or building in which is proposed to do
business conforms to all laws of health, fire and zoning
regulations applicable thereto, and is a safe and proper place or
building, and is not within
three hundred one thousand feet of any
school or church, measured from front door to front door, along the
street or streets:
Provided, That this requirement shall not apply
to a Class B license, or to any place now occupied by a beer licensee, so long as it is continuously so occupied:
Provided,
however, That the prohibition against locating any such proposed
business in a place or building within
three hundred one thousand
feet of any school shall not apply to any college or university
that has notified the commissioner, in writing, that it has no
objection to the location of any such proposed business in a place
or building within
three hundred one thousand feet of such college
or university;
(6) That the applicant is not incarcerated and has not during
the five years immediately preceding the date of said application
been convicted of a felony;
(7) That the applicant is the only person in any manner
pecuniarily interested in the business so asked to be licensed, and
that no other person shall be in any manner pecuniarily interested
therein during the continuance of the license; and
(8) That the applicant has not during five years next
immediately preceding the date of said application had a
nonintoxicating beer license revoked
.; and
(9)
That the applicant has general liability insurance
coverage of not less than one hundred thousand dollars per
occurrence and liquor liability insurance coverage of not less than
one hundred thousand per occurrence. The applicant shall submit
proof of coverage from each insurance coverage provider.
(b) The provisions and requirements of subsection (a) of this section are mandatory prerequisites for the issuance, and in the
event any applicant fails to qualify under the same, license shall
be refused. In addition to the information furnished in any
application, the commissioner may make such additional and
independent investigation of each applicant, and of the place to be
occupied, as deemed necessary or advisable; and for this reason
each and all applications, with license fee and bond, must be filed
thirty days prior to the beginning of any fiscal year, and if
application is for an unexpired portion of any fiscal year,
issuance of license may be withheld for such reasonable time as
necessary for investigation.
(c) The commissioner may refuse a license to any applicant
under the provisions of this article if the commissioner shall be
of the opinion:
(1) That the applicant is not a suitable person to be
licensed;
(2) That the place to be occupied by the applicant is not a
suitable place; or is within
three hundred one thousand feet of any
school or church, measured from front door to front door along the
street or streets:
Provided, That this requirement shall not
apply to a Class B licensee, or to any place now occupied by a beer
licensee, so long as it is continuously so occupied:
Provided,
however, That the prohibition against locating any such place to be
occupied by an applicant within
three hundred one thousand feet of any school shall not apply to any college or university that has
notified the commissioner, in writing, that it has no objection to
the location of any such place within
three hundred one thousand
feet of such college or university; or
(3) That the license should not be issued for reason of
conduct declared to be unlawful by this article.
CHAPTER 60. STATE CONTROL OF ALCOHOLIC LIQUORS.
ARTICLE 7. LICENSES TO PRIVATE CLUBS.
§60-7-4. Application for license; information required;
verification; application to be accompanied by fees; bond;
college fraternities and sororities ineligible for license;
racial discrimination by applicants.
(a) Application for a license to operate a private club shall
be made on such form as may be prescribed by the commissioner and
shall include:
(1) The name of the applicant;
(2) If such applicant be an unincorporated association, the
names and addresses of the members of its governing board;
(3) If such applicant be a corporation, the names and
addresses of its officers and directors;
(4) The place at which such applicant will conduct its
operations and whether the same is owned or leased by the
applicant;
(5) The number of members of the applicant;
(6) The name or names of any national organizations with which
applicant is affiliated and the nature of such affiliation;
(7) The size and nature of the dining and kitchen facilities
operated by applicant;
and
(8) That the applicant has general liability insurance
coverage of not less than one hundred thousand dollars per
ocurrence and liquor liability insurance coverage of not less than
one hundred thousand per occurrence. The applicant shall submit
proof of coverage from each insurance coverage provider; and
(8) (9) Such other information as the commissioner may
reasonably require which shall include, but not be limited to, the
criminal records, if any, of each member of the applicant's
governing board and/or its officers and directors who have been
convicted of a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude.
(b) Such application shall be verified by each member of the
governing board of the applicant if an unincorporated association
or, if the applicant be a corporation, by each of its officers and
all members of its board of directors. Such application shall be
accompanied by the license fee hereinafter prescribed and by a bond
of the applicant in the penal sum of five thousand dollars with a
corporate surety authorized to transact business in the state of
West Virginia, payable to the state of West Virginia, which bond
shall be conditioned on the payment of all fees herein prescribed
and on the faithful performance of and compliance with the provisions of this article.
(c) Under no circumstance shall any college fraternity or
sorority be issued a license to operate a private club.
(d) No license to operate a private club will be issued to
applicants who discriminate against any person or group of persons
because of race or color of such person or group of persons except
clubs as defined in clauses (1) and (2), subdivision (a), section
two of this article.
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