STATEMENT TO
SENATE, No. 3944
with Senate Floor Amendments
(Proposed by Senator SARLO)
ADOPTED: DECEMBER 19, 2024
Senate Bill No. 3944 clarifies that holders of plenary retail
consumption licenses for nonprofit art house movie theaters include
disregarded entities of certain nonprofit corporations. Specifically, the
bill clarifies that nonprofit corporations eligible for the license include
“disregarded entities” that are single-member limited liability
corporations disregarded for federal income tax purposes pursuant to
26 C.F.R. Part 301. Under current law, a plenary retail consumption
license allows for the sale of alcoholic beverages on the licensed
premises.
These Senate amendments provide that a county or municipality
also may hold a plenary retail consumption license for use in
connection with a premises which regularly operates as an art-house
movie theater or conducts musical or theatrical performances or
concerts for which admission is charged.
In addition, the Senate amendments allow the governing body of a
municipality, upon the approval of the Director of the Division of
Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC), to issue a plenary retail
consumption license for use in connection with a private theater entity
that is used for the purpose of showing motion pictures or where live
musical or theatrical performances or concerts are performed. The
Senate amendment limit the sale of alcoholic beverages to the one
hour immediately preceding a motion picture, concert, or musical or
theatrical performance and during performances, including
intermission. A license only would be issued for a premises used for
musical, theatrical, or concert performances that have a total seating
capacity of at least 50 persons but not more than 1,000 persons. For a
premises used for showing motion pictures, the license only would be
issued in connection with a premises that has three or less movie
screens and a total seating capacity of at least 50 persons but not more
than 600 persons.