City of Monroe, LA

ORDINANCE

STATE OF LOUISIANA

CITY OF MONROE                                                                           NO.  12,019               

The following Ordinance was introduced by Mr.  Marshall              , who moved for its adoption and was seconded by Mr.  Harvey                :

AN ORDINANCE AMENDING PROVISIONS OF CHAPTER 4 (ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES) TO REMOVE THE CLASS F ALCOHOL LICENSE AND FURTHER PROVIDING WITH RESPECT THERETO:

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            WHEREAS, the current Monroe City Code of Ordinances contains Chapter 4 entitled “Alcoholic Beverages;” and

            WHEREAS, the Class F (bottle club) license is a feature of local law and is not a license recognized by the state of Louisiana;

            WHEREAS, the Class F (bottle club) license is no longer necessary due to its limited use in the City of Monroe and the outdated nature of its provisions;

            WHEREAS, the City of Monroe desires to remove Class F (bottle club) licenses effective January 1, 2021 and no Class F license from the date of adoption of this ordinance should be granted.

            NOW THEREFORE, it is hereby ordained that the Chapter 4 of the Monroe City Code entitled “Alcoholic Beverages” is hereby amended and enacted as follows:

Sec. 4-1. - Definitions.

For the purposes of this chapter, the following terms have the respective meanings ascribed to them in this section, except in those instances where the context indicates a different meaning: 

(11)  Bottle club means any establishment whereby the owner, corporation, partnership or their employees do not sell, serve, handle, dispense or store alcoholic beverages, but in which patrons are allowed to consume alcoholic beverages in the premises from the patron's own store, stock or supplies of alcoholic beverages. Removed.

(Code 1958, § 4-1; Ord. No. 7267, 4-14-81; Ord. No. 7295, 6-23-81; Ord. No. 7409, 6-22-82; Ord. No. 7416, 7-27-82; Ord. No. 7994, 4-28-87; Ord. No. 8097, 5-10-88; Ord. No. 9228, 5-28-91; Ord. No. 9531, 8-8-95; Ord. No. 11,954, 9-10-19)

State Law reference— Definitions, R.S. 26:2, 26:241, 26:581, 26:641, 26:711.

AND

Sec. 4-2. - License—Required, prior payment of fee before issuance; high-content license includes low-content license.

Every retail dealer and every wholesale dealer in alcoholic beverages of low alcoholic content or alcoholic beverages of high alcoholic content and any private club or bottle club, or manufacturer or brewer, is hereby required to obtain from the city for each year an appropriate license to conduct such business during each year in which such business is to be conducted, the issuance of which shall be conditioned upon the prior payment of the license fee levied in section 4-13. A license to sell alcoholic beverages of high alcoholic content shall include, and obviate the necessity of, a license to sell alcoholic beverages of low alcoholic content.

(Code 1958, § 4-2; Ord. No. 7267, 4-14-81; Ord. No. 7295, 6-23-81; Ord. No. 11,954, 9-10-19)

Cross reference— Licenses and taxation, Ch. 20; occupational licenses, § 20-21 et seq.; sales and use tax, § 20-41 et seq.

AND

Sec. 4-6. - Same—Separate license required; transferability; changing location and other changes.

(a)  Separate licenses shall be required for each place of business operated by a retail dealer, wholesale dealer bottle club, or private club, or manufacturer or brewer. All licenses issued hereunder shall be personal and nontransferable and shall become void upon the death of the licensee. If the business changes hands during the period for which the license was issued, a new license must be applied for and paid to the city tax collector within fifteen (15) days of the date of change. The original licensee failing to notify the city tax collector of any such change in the license within the fifteen (15) calendar day period shall be assessed ten dollars ($10.00) per day for each day of noncompliance. A retail dealer, or wholesale dealer, or manufacturer or brewer shall conduct his business only in the licensed premises, which premises shall include the lot of the licensee but shall exclude the sidewalk, street curb, and street adjacent thereto; and no license issued hereunder shall authorize the conducting of business in any changed location except upon application therefor submitted to the city council, which may grant or deny it as it deems advisable.

(b)  Should the location of the place of business be changed during the period for which the license was issued, a new license must be applied for and paid to the city tax collector within fifteen (15) days of the date of change. The original licensee failing to notify the city tax collector of such change within the said fifteen-day period shall be assessed ten dollars ($10.00) per day for each day of noncompliance.

(c)  Should the: (1) Name of the business, (2) address of the licensee, or (3) any of the requirements of section 4-11 herein change during the period for which the license was issued, such license must be sent to the city tax collector within fifteen (15) days of the date of change so that the proper change may be noted thereon. The city tax collector shall collect from the licensee requesting the change an administration fee of ten (10) per cent of the license fee or a minimum fee of twenty dollars ($20.00), whichever is greater, for any such license change. A licensee failing to notify the city tax collector shall be assessed an additional ten dollars ($10.00) per day for each day of noncompliance.

(Code 1958, § 4-6; Ord. No. 7267, 4-14-81; Ord. No. 7295, 6-23-81; Ord. No. 7851, 11-12-85; Ord. No. 11,954, 9-10-19)

State Law reference— Personal nature of license R.S. 26:75, 26:275.

AND

Sec. 4-9. - License applications—Where and when filed, delinquency penalty.

(a)  All applications for licenses for new businesses shall be filed with the tax collector of the city.

(b)  Applications for renewals for a license shall be filed with the tax collector of the city on or before the 31st day of October for the ensuing year.

(c)  Should any retail dealer, wholesale dealer, bottle club, or private club, or manufacturer or brewer fail to file an application for the renewal of a license for the ensuing year on or before the 31st day of October, a delinquency penalty shall be imposed of five (5) per cent of the amount due for the permit applied for if the failure is for not more than thirty (30) days, with an additional five (5) per cent for each additional thirty (30) days or fraction thereof during which the failure continues. If the application for the renewal of a license is not filed until on or after January first of the year for which the license is required, the application may be denied.

(Code 1968, § 4-8; Ord. No. 7267, 4-14-81; Ord. No. 7295, 6-23-81; Ord. No. 11,954, 9-10-19)

AND

Sec. 4-13. - Alcoholic beverage business—License fees.

There is hereby levied an annual license fee against all persons, corporations or partnerships who may engage in the business of selling, either retail or wholesale, offering for sale, serving, or allowing the consumption of alcoholic beverages in the city. The fees are assessed as follows:

(a)  Class A liquor retail dealer .....$500.00

(b)  Class B liquor retail dealer (off-premises only) .....$500.00

(c)  Class C beer retail dealer .....$75.00

(d)  Class D beer retail dealer (off-premises only) .....$60.00

(e)  Class E private clubs .....$500.00

(f)  Class F bottle clubs .....$100.00 Removed.

(g)  Class G wholesale liquor .....$500.00

(h)  Class H wholesale beer .....$100.00

(i)  Class R .....$25.00

(j)  Class R temporary .....$10.00

(k)  Class M manufacturer or brewer .....$500.00

(Code 1958, § 4-11; Ord. No. 7267, 4-14-81; Ord. No. 7295, 6-23-81; Ord. No. 7851, 11-12-85; Ord. No. 8097, 5-10-88; Ord. No. 9340, 11-24-92; Ord. No. 11,954, 9-10-19)

Cross reference— Licenses and taxation, Ch. 20.

State Law reference— State permit fees, R.S. 26:71, 26:271

THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF MONROE HEREBY ORDAINS, that if any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this legislation is, for any reason, held to be unconstitutional, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this ordinance. The Council hereby declares that it would have passed this law, and each section, subsection, clause or phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses and phrases be declared unconstitutional.

            This Ordinance was introduced on the  22nd       day of September, 2020.

            Notice published on the  25th       day of  September             , 2020.

This Ordinance having been submitted in writing, introduced and published, was then submitted to a vote as a whole, the vote thereon being as follows:

AYES:            Harvey, Woods, Marshall & Dawson

NAYS:            None.

ABSENT:      Ezernack

And the Ordinance was declared ADOPTED on the  13th       day of  October       , 2020.

Douglas Harvey                     

CHAIRMAN

Carolus S. Riley                     

CITY CLERK

Oliver Friday Ellis                 

MAYOR’S APPROVAL

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MAYOR’S VETO