An Act To Permit the Sharing of Revenue from the Sale of Alcoholic Beverages at Sporting Events
Sec. 1. 28-A MRSA §605, first ¶, as amended by PL 2013, c. 345, §2, is further amended to read:
Except as otherwise provided in this section and section 608, no a license or any interest in a license may not be sold, transferred, assigned or otherwise subject to control by any person other than the licensee. If the business, or any interest in the business, in connection with which a licensed activity is conducted is sold, transferred or assigned, the license holder shall immediately send to the bureau the license and a sworn statement showing the name and address of the purchaser. The bureau is not required to refund any portion of the licensee fee if the license is surrendered before it expires. For the purposes of this section, a tenant brewer who is licensed in accordance with section 1355-A, subsection 6 is not considered to be subject to the control of the host brewer, as described in that subsection, or considered to have been transferred or assigned the license or interest in the license of the host brewer.
Sec. 2. 28-A MRSA §608 is enacted to read:
§ 608. Civic auditoriums with professional sporting events; revenues from the sale of liquor
A civic auditorium licensed to sell liquor for on-premises consumption may enter into an agreement to share revenue from the sale of liquor with a professional sports team not licensed under this Title if the following conditions are met.
summary
This bill creates an exception to the law that prohibits a liquor license from being sold, assigned or subject to the control of a person other than the licensee. The bill allows a civic auditorium that holds a liquor license and serves as the designated host facility for a professional sports team to enter into an agreement to share the proceeds from the sale of alcoholic beverages sold in conjunction with the professional team’s sporting events. In order to qualify for this exception, the civic auditorium must have the capacity to seat at least 3,000 people.