An Act
ENROLLED HOUSE
BILL NO. 1270 By: Hays of the House
and
Alvord of the Senate
An Act relating to alcoholic beverages; amending 37A
O.S. 2021, Section 2 -142, which relates to
information furnished by license applicants;
directing the Alcoholic Beverage Laws Enforcement
(ABLE) Commission to notify applicants of
deficiencies in submitted applications and allowing
applicants time to provide required information;
providing time period and procedures for approving
and denying applications ; and providing an effective
date.
SUBJECT: Alcoholic beverages
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 37A O.S. 2021, Section 2 -142, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 2-142. A. No license prov ided for in the Oklahoma
Alcoholic Beverage Control Act shall be issued except pursuant to an
application filed with the ABLE Commission. The ABLE Commission
may, however, provide for a form of simplified application for
renewal of a license. Payment of the prescribed fee s hall accompany
each application for a license.
B. Every applicant for an original license, except applicants
for an employee, charitable event, special event or airline/railroad
beverage license, shall also furnish the following:
ENR. H. B. NO. 1270 Page 2
1. A tax receipt proving payment of ad valorem taxes, including
real and personal taxes, or furnish to the ABLE Commission
satisfactory evidence that no taxes are due or delinquent;
2. A certificate of zoning issued by the municipality in which
the applicant proposes to locat e the applicant's principal place of
business under the license, or by the county if the principal place
of business is located outside the incorporated limits of a
municipality, certifying that the applicant's proposed location and
use thereof comply with all municipal zoning ordinances or county
zoning regulations if applicable;
3. A certificate issued by the municipality in which the
applicant proposes to locate the applicant's principal place of
business under the license, or by th e county if the prin cipal place
of business is located outside the incorporated limits of a
municipality, certifying that the applicant's existing or proposed
operations under the license comply with all municipal or county
fire codes, safety codes, or hea lth codes, if applicable;
4. Authorization, on forms furnished by the ABLE Commission,
for complete investigation of the applicant's current financial
status as it relates to the application for a license, including but
not limited to access to bank acco unts, loan agreement s and
financial statements;
5. A deed, management agreement, purchasing agreement or lease;
and
6. Proof of liability insurance covering both bodily injury and
property damage.
C. The certificates required by paragraphs 2 and 3 of
subsection B of this section shall be signed by the mayor of the
municipality or the chair of the board of county commissioners
issuing same, unless the municipality, by ordinance, or the county
designates some other officer or entity to issue the certifi cates.
Applications for such certificates shall be in writing and shall
contain information in such detail as the municipality or county may
reasonably require describing the location and nature of operations
to be conducted under the license. Municipali ties and counties
shall be required to act on all applications for such certificates
within twenty (20) days of receipt of the written application.
ENR. H. B. NO. 1270 Page 3
D. Municipalities and counties may grant conditional
certificates for premises proposed for licensed opera tions for which
construction, modification or alteration is not completed.
Conditional certificates shall indicate that the proposed premises
will comply with the municipal or county zoning, fire, safety and
health codes. The granting of conditional cert ificates shall not
relieve the applicant of the duty of obtaining the certificates
required by paragraphs 2 and 3 of subsection B of this section after
completion of the construction, modification, or alteration.
E. A municipality or county shall issue t he certificates
required by paragraphs 2 and 3 of subsection B of this section
within ten (10) days after all final inspections are completed.
Thereafter if a licensee fails to maintain compliance with
municipal or county zoning ordinances and codes, the mayor or chair
of the board of county commissioners or their designee, shall
forthwith notify the ABLE Commission in writing setting forth
details of the noncompliance.
F. Within ten (10) days of the receipt of all information
required in subsections B t hrough E of this sec tion, the ABLE
Commission shall notify the applicant in writing of any deficiencies
in the application with a description of what actions need to be
taken to cure the deficiencies. The applicant shall then have a
reasonable period of t ime to provide the additional information
sufficient to complete the application. Upon a completed
application, the ABLE Commission shall issue or deny the license
within twenty (20) days of the applicant's final submission. The
ABLE Commission's denial of issuance of a lic ense shall be in
writing and shall state with specificity the reasons for the denial.
G. Upon issuance of any license, the ABLE Commission shall
furnish the Oklahoma Tax Commission with a list of such licenses.
G. H. In the event of denial of an application for a license,
the ABLE Commission shall refund to the applicant the amount of the
tendered fee, less ten percent (10%), which it shall retain as cost
of processing the application.
H. I. Any licensee, except an employee license e, who fails to
renew the license prior to the expiration date of the license, shall
be subject to a late renewal penalty as provided by rules of the
ABLE Commission. Further, any licensee, except an employee
licensee, who fails to renew the license withi n sixty (60) days of ENR. H. B. NO. 1270 Page 4
the expiration of the license shall be required to submit a new
license application. An employee licensee who fails to renew prior
to the expiration of the license shall be required to submit a new
license application; provided, howev er, that under no ci rcumstances
shall any licensee, including an employee licensee, whose license to
serve or sell alcoholic beverages has expired, continue to serve or
sell alcoholic beverages.
I. J. The requirements in this section shall be required fo r a
public event license applicant, except for those certificates
required by paragraphs 2 and 3 of subsection B of this section as
the events are temporary in nature and the locations are not
permanently licensed.
SECTION 2. This act shall become effective November 1, 2025. ENR. H. B. NO. 1270 Page 5
Passed the House of Representatives the 13th day of March, 2025.
Presiding Officer of the House
of Representatives
Passed the Senate the 22nd day of April, 2025.
Presiding Officer of the Senate
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
Received by the Office of the Governor this ____________________
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________
Approved by the Governor of the State of Oklahoma this _________
day of _____________ ______, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
_________________________________
Governor of the State of Oklahoma
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE
Received by the Office of the Secretary of State this __________
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________