The bureau shall issue a license for an agency a liquor store within a municipality or unincorporated place by the following procedure.

Sec. 28. 28-A MRSA §453-A, sub-§§1, 1-A, 2, 3, 4, 5, 5-A and 6, as amended by PL 1997, c. 373, §47, are further amended to read:

1. Bidding to replace state liquor stores. The bureau shall solicit bids from the general public for each agency liquor store license to be issued. For an agency a license to replace an existing state store, the bureau may not accept a bid lower than 1% of the taxable retail sales of the store being replaced, determined for the fiscal year that ended immediately before the closure of the store.

1-A. Bidding to replace agency liquor stores. The bureau shall solicit bids from the general public for each agency liquor store license to be issued. For licenses to establish an agency liquor store or replace an existing agency liquor store, the bureau may not accept a bid lower than $2,000.

2. Public notice and solicitation of bids. The bureau shall, in accordance with the Maine Administrative Procedure Act, give public notice that an agency a liquor store may be established in a particular municipality or unincorporated place. The bureau shall summarize in the public notice the bidding requirements for the agency store license, including the minimum bid required. The bureau shall request all parties in the municipality or unincorporated place interested in bidding on a license to establish an agency a liquor store there to submit bids and applications to the bureau.

3. Information to applicants. The bureau shall provide all applicants with the necessary information for the establishment of an agency a liquor store.

4. Notice to municipality. Upon receipt of all applications for an agency a liquor store license in a municipality and at least 15 days before the final selection of an applicant or applicants by the bureau, the bureau shall notify the municipal officers of that municipality of the proposed location of each applicant.

5. Licensing decisions. The bureau shall conduct an investigation to determine the feasibility of the location and type of facility for the agency liquor store and shall issue the