New York State Liquor Authority’s Response to the Liquor License Backlog

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) December 4, 2010 --

According to a New York State Law Revision Commission’s Report on the State Liquor Authority (“SLA”) and New York’s Alcohol Beverage Control Law (“ABC Law”), the SLA’s 9 month backlog of liquor license applications as of October 2009 reflected a “failure in the licensing process, jeopardized public health and safety, and exacerbated the economic crisis currently plaguing New York. “ The Report stated that “small business owners…are forced to suffer ever-mounting expenses for months on end without the income generated from having these [liquor] licenses.” In the Report, the LRC called for major modifications to the ABC Law as well as changes to the way the SLA is administered.

More recently, in March 2010, SLA Chairman Dennis Rosen testified to a Senate committee that although the backlog in Upstate New York had been eliminated, about 1,700 applications remained to be processed in the New York City metropolitan area. “These delays, which should be considered unacceptable during good times, are simply intolerable, given the current economic climate,” stated Rosen.

In response to the backlog, Chairman Rosen imposed stricter guidelines on accepting applications. Higher level employees within the SLA now perform a thorough review at intake to eliminate accepting applications that are incomplete or not approvable, as acceptance of such applications leads to wasted staff time and adds to the backlog. Applicants are no longer permitted to “piecemeal” information or documentation required by the SLA, which has led to examiners starting and stopping and restarting the examination process. The examining process will now come back in to compliance with statute. If the required information is not provided in compliance with the applicable ABC Law, the application will be disapproved for failure to comply. The applicant will have the right to request a hearing on the disapproval or may reapply. The SLA currently spends months reviewing applications that are incomplete, which is unfair to applicants who have properly filled out their applications and adds substantially to th backlog.

Contact Information
The Rodriguez Law Firm
304 Park Avenue South, 11th Floor
New York, NY 10010
(877) 311-4548
info@lawrodriguez.com
http://www.nyliquorlicensenow.com/

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