STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 8953 IN SENATE April 2, 2024 ___________ Introduced by Sen. COMRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Govern- ment Operations AN ACT to amend the alcoholic beverage control law, in relation to establishing on-premise liquor licenses for certified educators of alcoholic beverage instructional courses, establishing special permits for registered lecturers to conduct these courses, and establishing the "responsible alcohol education act" The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "responsi- 2 ble alcohol education act." 3 § 2. Section 3 of the alcoholic beverage control law is amended by 4 adding a new subdivision 7-aa to read as follows: 5 7-aa. "Certified educator" means any persons or company owned and run 6 by persons who have appropriate credentialing and who engage in the 7 specific business of creating, selling, and executing instructional 8 courses in the consumption and appreciation of wine, beer, and spirits. 9 Certified educators must possess certification that is satisfactory to 10 the state liquor authority ("authority"), including, but not limited to 11 the following: (a) a certified specialist of wine or certified wine 12 educator status as conferred by the Society of Wine Educators; (b) a 13 Wine and Spirits Education Trust Diploma; (c) status as a certified 14 sommelier; (d) the completion of a wine industry program at a technical 15 college or culinary school; (e) certification as a cicerone; (f) 16 completion of coursework from the Master Brewers Association of the 17 Americas; (g) or any other certification program acceptable to the 18 authority. Certified educators must also complete Training for Inter- 19 vention Procedures (TIPS) or other certified alcohol training programs 20 and have a valid certificate on file with the authority. Certified 21 educators may individually perform instructional courses or be allowed 22 to retain registered lecturers to serve as the on-site supervisors and 23 teachers of each class and to oversee the pouring of beverages by volun- 24 teers working under their direction. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD15108-01-4 S. 8953 2 1 § 3. Section 3 of the alcoholic beverage control law is amended by 2 adding a new subdivision 24-a to read as follows: 3 24-a. "Registered lecturer" means any person who possesses certif- 4 ication that is satisfactory to the authority and who is retained by a 5 certified educator for the purpose of on-site supervision and instruc- 6 tion of each class, as well as to oversee the pouring of alcoholic 7 beverages by volunteers working under their direction. 8 § 4. The alcoholic beverage control law is amended by adding a new 9 section 55-d to read as follows: 10 § 55-d. Certified educator's licenses. The authority may issue a 11 "certified educator license" to a person or company owned and run by 12 persons who meet the requirements specified in subdivision seven-aa of 13 section three of this chapter, at a biannual cost of two hundred dollars 14 per license to a certified educator of alcoholic beverages, under the 15 following conditions: 16 1. licenses shall be limited to a permanent location where classes 17 will be held; should a certified educator need to move locations for any 18 purpose, notice must be given to the authority, who will approve or deny 19 the change to the course's location; 20 2. the license may be used to purchase or procure alcoholic beverages 21 from domestic wholesalers, with the decisions to be made based on the 22 judgment of the certified educator; 23 3. the license must be renewed every two years from the original date 24 of issuance, and applications for renewal must be sent to the authority 25 no less than thirty days before the anticipated date of expiration; 26 4. the license may be used to serve alcoholic beverages for educa- 27 tional purposes to any number of individuals over the age of twenty-one 28 in any part of the state, unless a political subdivision adopts an ordi- 29 nance prohibiting alcoholic beverage education; 30 5. all events conducted pursuant to this license must be conducted 31 through advance registration, and no walk-in access to the general 32 public is permitted; 33 6. all persons retained by a certified educator to engage in the 34 instruction and supervision of each class must receive special permits, 35 as specified in section ninety-nine-i of this chapter, that are issued 36 by the authority for the purpose of supervising classes, providing 37 educational instruction on alcoholic beverages, overseeing the pouring 38 of beverages by volunteers, and carrying on the activities associated 39 with alcoholic beverage education; 40 7. certified educators shall not sell alcohol for off-premises 41 consumption and no orders may be taken for future sales; 42 8. except as provided for in this section, certified educators may 43 hold classes at any location, whether or not the premises have a liquor 44 license, subject to all applicable municipal and state alcoholic zoning 45 laws and with the decision based on the judgment of the certified educa- 46 tor and approval by the authority; 47 9. classes shall not be conducted during business hours at retail 48 businesses that do not have a liquor license nor shall classes be 49 conducted after hours at a retail business that does have a liquor 50 license; 51 10. certified educators shall maintain a suitable level of general 52 liability insurance, and the policy shall be reported to the authority 53 along with the license application; 54 11. prior to providing a licensee's first class authorized under this 55 section, the licensee shall notify the authority as to the contents and 56 location of the course's planned curriculum. Notification shall include
S. 8953 3 1 information that pertains to the exact duration and location of each 2 class throughout the course, as well as how many participants will be in 3 attendance, how many lecturers will be teaching the course, and how much 4 alcohol will be served. Notification shall be sent by the licensee no 5 less than thirty days before the first class of a new course cycle; 6 12. certified educators shall be subject to the powers and duties of 7 the authority, as specified in section eighteen of this chapter; and 8 13. the authority shall adopt any rules consistent with and in furth- 9 erance of the implementation of this section. 10 § 5. The alcoholic beverage control law is amended by adding a new 11 section 58-e to read as follows: 12 § 58-e. Certified educator's licenses. The authority may issue a 13 "certified educator license" to a person or company owned and run by 14 persons who meet the requirements specified in subdivision seven-aa of 15 section three of this chapter, at a biannual cost of two hundred dollars 16 per license to a certified educator of alcoholic beverages, under the 17 following conditions: 18 1. licenses shall be limited to a permanent location where classes 19 will be held; should a certified educator need to move locations for any 20 purpose, notice must be given to the authority, who will approve or deny 21 the change to the course's location; 22 2. the license may be used to purchase or procure alcoholic beverages 23 from domestic wholesalers, with the decisions to be made based on the 24 judgment of the certified educator; 25 3. the license must be renewed every two years from the original date 26 of issuance, and applications for renewal must be sent to the authority 27 no less than thirty days before the anticipated date of expiration; 28 4. the license may be used to serve alcoholic beverages for educa- 29 tional purposes to any number of individuals over the age of twenty-one 30 in any part of the state, unless a political subdivision adopts an ordi- 31 nance prohibiting alcoholic beverage education; 32 5. all events conducted pursuant to this license must be conducted 33 through advance registration, and no walk-in access to the general 34 public is permitted; 35 6. all persons retained by a certified educator to engage in the 36 instruction and supervision of each class must receive special permits, 37 as specified in section ninety-nine-i of this chapter, that are issued 38 by the authority for the purpose of supervising classes, providing 39 educational instruction on alcoholic beverages, overseeing the pouring 40 of beverages by volunteers, and carrying on the activities associated 41 with alcoholic beverage education; 42 7. certified educators shall not sell alcohol for off-premises 43 consumption and no orders may be taken for future sales; 44 8. except as provided for in this section, certified educators may 45 hold classes at any location, whether or not the premises have a liquor 46 license, subject to all applicable municipal and state alcoholic zoning 47 laws and with the decision based on the judgment of the certified educa- 48 tor and approval by the authority; 49 9. classes shall not be conducted during business hours at retail 50 businesses that do not have a liquor license nor shall classes be 51 conducted after hours at a retail business that does have a liquor 52 license; 53 10. certified educators shall maintain a suitable level of general 54 liability insurance, and the policy shall be reported to the authority 55 along with the license application;
S. 8953 4 1 11. prior to providing a licensee's first class authorized under this 2 section, the licensee shall notify the authority as to the contents and 3 location of the course's planned curriculum. Notification shall include 4 information that pertains to the exact duration and location of each 5 class throughout the course, as well as how many participants will be in 6 attendance, how many lecturers will be teaching the course, and how much 7 alcohol will be served. Notification shall be sent by the licensee no 8 less than thirty days before the first class of a new course cycle; 9 12. certified educators shall be subject to the powers and duties of 10 the authority, as specified in section eighteen of this chapter; and 11 13. the authority shall adopt any rules consistent with and in furth- 12 erance of the implementation of this section. 13 § 6. The alcoholic beverage control law is amended by adding a new 14 section 63-b to read as follows: 15 § 63-b. Certified educator's licenses. The authority may issue a 16 "certified educator license" to a person or company owned and run by 17 persons who meet the requirements specified in subdivision seven-aa of 18 section three of this chapter, at a biannual cost of two hundred dollars 19 per license to a certified educator of alcoholic beverages, under the 20 following conditions: 21 1. licenses shall be limited to a permanent location where classes 22 will be held; should a certified educator need to move locations for any 23 purpose, notice must be given to the authority, who will approve or deny 24 the change to the course's location; 25 2. the license may be used to purchase or procure alcoholic beverages 26 from domestic wholesalers, with the decisions to be made based on the 27 judgment of the certified educator; 28 3. the license must be renewed every two years from the original date 29 of issuance, and applications for renewal must be sent to the authority 30 no less than thirty days before the anticipated date of expiration; 31 4. the license may be used to serve alcoholic beverages for educa- 32 tional purposes to any number of individuals over the age of twenty-one 33 in any part of the state, unless a political subdivision adopts an ordi- 34 nance prohibiting alcoholic beverage education; 35 5. all events conducted pursuant to this license must be conducted 36 through advance registration, and no walk-in access to the general 37 public is permitted; 38 6. all persons retained by a certified educator to engage in the 39 instruction and supervision of each class must receive special permits, 40 as specified in section ninety-nine-i of this chapter, that are issued 41 by the authority for the purpose of supervising classes, providing 42 educational instruction on alcoholic beverages, overseeing the pouring 43 of beverages by volunteers, and carrying on the activities associated 44 with alcoholic beverage education; 45 7. certified educators shall not sell alcohol for off-premises 46 consumption and no orders may be taken for future sales; 47 8. except as provided for in this section, certified educators may 48 hold classes at any location, whether or not the premises have a liquor 49 license, subject to all applicable municipal and state alcoholic zoning 50 laws and with the decision based on the judgment of the certified educa- 51 tor and approval by the authority; 52 9. classes shall not be conducted during business hours at retail 53 businesses that do not have a liquor license nor shall classes be 54 conducted after hours at a retail business that does have a liquor 55 license;
S. 8953 5 1 10. certified educators shall maintain a suitable level of general 2 liability insurance, and the policy shall be reported to the authority 3 along with the license application; 4 11. prior to providing a licensee's first class authorized under this 5 section, the licensee shall notify the authority as to the contents and 6 location of the course's planned curriculum. Notification shall include 7 information that pertains to the exact duration and location of each 8 class throughout the course, as well as how many participants will be in 9 attendance, how many lecturers will be teaching the course, and how much 10 alcohol will be served. Notification shall be sent by the licensee no 11 less than thirty days before the first class of a new course cycle; 12 12. certified educators shall be subject to the powers and duties of 13 the authority, as specified in section eighteen of this chapter; and 14 13. the authority shall adopt any rules consistent with and in furth- 15 erance of the implementation of this section. 16 § 7. The alcoholic beverage control law is amended by adding a new 17 section 80-a to read as follows: 18 § 80-a. Certified educator's licenses. The authority may issue a 19 "certified educator license" to a person or company owned and run by 20 persons who meet the requirements specified in subdivision seven-aa of 21 section three of this chapter, at a biannual cost of two hundred dollars 22 per license to a certified educator of alcoholic beverages, under the 23 following conditions: 24 1. licenses shall be limited to a permanent location where classes 25 will be held; should a certified educator need to move locations for any 26 purpose, notice must be given to the authority, who will approve or deny 27 the change to the course's location; 28 2. the license may be used to purchase or procure alcoholic beverages 29 from domestic wholesalers, with the decisions to be made based on the 30 judgment of the certified educator; 31 3. the license must be renewed every two years from the original date 32 of issuance, and applications for renewal must be sent to the authority 33 no less than thirty days before the anticipated date of expiration; 34 4. the license may be used to serve alcoholic beverages for educa- 35 tional purposes to any number of individuals over the age of twenty-one 36 in any part of the state, unless a political subdivision adopts an ordi- 37 nance prohibiting alcoholic beverage education; 38 5. all events conducted pursuant to this license must be conducted 39 through advance registration, and no walk-in access to the general 40 public is permitted; 41 6. all persons retained by a certified educator to engage in the 42 instruction and supervision of each class must receive special permits, 43 as specified in section ninety-nine-i of this chapter, that are issued 44 by the authority for the purpose of supervising classes, providing 45 educational instruction on alcoholic beverages, overseeing the pouring 46 of beverages by volunteers, and carrying on the activities associated 47 with alcoholic beverage education; 48 7. certified educators shall not sell alcohol for off-premises 49 consumption and no orders may be taken for future sales; 50 8. except as provided for in this section, certified educators may 51 hold classes at any location, whether or not the premises have a liquor 52 license, subject to all applicable municipal and state alcoholic zoning 53 laws and with the decision based on the judgment of the certified educa- 54 tor and approval by the authority; 55 9. classes shall not be conducted during business hours at retail 56 businesses that do not have a liquor license nor shall classes be
S. 8953 6 1 conducted after hours at a retail business that does have a liquor 2 license; 3 10. certified educators shall maintain a suitable level of general 4 liability insurance, and the policy shall be reported to the authority 5 along with the license application; 6 11. prior to providing a licensee's first class authorized under this 7 section, the licensee shall notify the authority as to the contents and 8 location of the course's planned curriculum. Notification shall include 9 information that pertains to the exact duration and location of each 10 class throughout the course, as well as how many participants will be in 11 attendance, how many lecturers will be teaching the course, and how much 12 alcohol will be served. Notification shall be sent by the licensee no 13 less than thirty days before the first class of a new course cycle; 14 12. certified educators shall be subject to the powers and duties of 15 the authority, as specified in section eighteen of this chapter; and 16 13. the authority shall adopt any rules consistent with and in furth- 17 erance of the implementation of this section. 18 § 8. The alcoholic beverage control law is amended by adding a new 19 section 99-i to read as follows: 20 § 99-i. Registered lecturers. The authority may issue a special permit 21 to a person meeting the requirements specified in subdivision seven-aa 22 of section three of this chapter, at a one-time cost of two hundred 23 dollars, to be renewed biannually, subject to the following conditions: 24 1. registered lecturers must be directly retained by, as well as 25 subject to the control of licensed certified educators; 26 2. registered lecturers shall be bound by the same credentialing 27 requirements as are certified educators, as specified in subdivision 28 seven-aa of section three of this chapter; 29 3. certified educators may employ and utilize any number of registered 30 lecturers per class or per curriculum, with the decisions to be made 31 based on the judgment of the certified educator; 32 4. registered lecturers shall not be required to maintain their own 33 general liability insurance; 34 5. registered lecturers shall have the ability to conduct all activ- 35 ities associated with alcohol education, including but not limited to 36 supervising classes, providing educational instruction on alcoholic 37 beverages, and overseeing the pouring of beverages by volunteers; except 38 that the permit shall not allow registered lecturers to purchase or 39 procure alcoholic beverages for the purposes of alcohol education; 40 6. permits for registered lecturers shall be applied for through the 41 authority no later than thirty days prior to the commencement of the 42 first class or course taught by the registered lecturer; 43 7. the permit must be renewed every two years from the original date 44 of issuance, and applications for renewal must be sent to the authority 45 no less than thirty days before the anticipated date of expiration; 46 8. registered lecturers shall hold classes at locations that were 47 previously approved by the certified educator and followed the proce- 48 dures specified in subdivision ten of sections fifty-five-d, fifty- 49 eight-e, sixty-three-b and eighty-a of this chapter; 50 9. registered lecturers shall be subject to the powers and duties of 51 the authority, as specified in section eighteen of this chapter; and 52 10. the authority shall adopt any rules consistent with and in furth- 53 erance of the implementation of this section. 54 § 9. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after 55 it shall have become a law.