Hawaii-2010-SB56-Amended

SECTION 1. Section 281-17, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:

"(a) The liquor commission, within its own county, shall have the sole jurisdiction, power, authority, and discretion, subject only to this chapter:

(1) To grant, renew, refuse, suspend, and revoke any licenses for the manufacture, importation, and sale of liquors; provided that a license renewal for the applicable class of license for a bar, business, nightclub, or restaurant, as those terms are defined in section 328J-1, shall not be renewed unless the licensee:

(A) Shows satisfactory proof of compliance with the signage requirements of section 328J-9; and

(B) Has not had a verified complaint filed against the licensee with the department of health or the commission for violation of chapter 328J;

(2) To take appropriate action against a person who, directly or indirectly, manufactures, sells, or purchases any liquor without being authorized pursuant to this chapter; provided that in counties which have established by charter a liquor control adjudication board, the board shall have the jurisdiction, power, authority, and discretion to hear and determine administrative complaints of the director regarding violations of the liquor laws of the State or of the rules of the liquor commission, and impose penalties for violations thereof as may be provided by law;

(3) To control, supervise, and regulate the manufacture, importation, and sale of liquors by investigation, enforcement, and education; provided that any educational program shall be limited to licensees and their employees and shall be financed through the money collected from the assessment of fines against licensees;

(4) From time to time to make, amend, and repeal such rules, not inconsistent with this chapter, as in the judgment of the commission seem appropriate for carrying out this chapter and for the efficient administration thereof, and the proper conduct of the business of all licensees, including every matter or thing required to be done or which may be done with the approval or consent or by order or under the direction or supervision of or as prescribed by the commission; which rules, when adopted as provided in chapter 91 shall have the force and effect of law;

(5) Subject to chapter 76, to appoint and remove an administrator, who may also be appointed an investigator and who shall be responsible for the operations and activities of the staff. The administrator may hire and remove hearing officers, investigators, and clerical or other assistants as its business may from time to time require, to prescribe their duties, and fix their compensation; to engage the services of experts and persons engaged in the practice of a profession, if deemed expedient. Every investigator, within the scope of the investigator's duties, shall have the powers of a police officer;

(6) To limit the number of licenses of any class or kind within the county, or the number of licenses of any class or kind to do business in any given locality, when in the judgment of the commission such limitations are in the public interest;

(7) To prescribe the nature of the proof to be furnished, the notices to be given, and the conditions to be met or observed in case of the issuance of a duplicate license in place of one alleged to have been lost or destroyed, including a requirement of any indemnity deemed appropriate to the case;

(8) To fix the hours between which licensed premises of any class or classes may regularly be open for the transaction of business, which shall be uniform throughout the county as to each class respectively;

(9) To prescribe all forms to be used for the purposes of this chapter not otherwise provided for in this chapter, and the character and manner of keeping of books, records, and accounts to be kept by licensees in any matter pertaining to their business;

(10) To investigate violations of this chapter, chapter 244D, and chapter 328J (including complaints of violations), and, notwithstanding any law to the contrary, violations of the applicable department of health's allowable noise levels, through its investigators or otherwise, to include covert operations, and to report violations to the prosecuting officer for prosecution and, where appropriate, the director of taxation to hear and determine complaints against any licensee;

(11) To prescribe, by rule, the terms, conditions, and circumstances under which persons or any class of persons may be employed by holders of licenses;

(12) To prescribe, by rule, the term of any license or solicitor's and representative's permit authorized by this chapter, the annual or prorated amount, the manner of payment of fees for the licenses and permits, and the amount of filing fees; [~~and~~]

(13) To prescribe, by rule, the circumstances and penalty for the unauthorized manufacturing or selling of any liquor[.]; and

(14) To issue a summons or citation for violation of chapter 328J, as provided in section 328J-12."

SECTION 2. Section 281-20, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§281-20 General right of inspection. Any investigator may, at all times, without notice and without any search warrant or other legal process, visit and have immediate access to every part of the premises of every licensee for the purpose of making any examination or inspection thereof or inquiry into the books and records therein, to ascertain whether all of the conditions of the license and all provisions of this chapter [~~and~~], chapter 244D, and chapter 328J are being complied with by the licensee."

SECTION 3. Section 328J-6, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"[[]§328J‑6[]] Presumptively reasonable distance. (a) Smoking is prohibited within a presumptively reasonable minimum distance of twenty feet from entrances, exits, windows that open, and ventilation intakes that serve an enclosed or partially enclosed area where smoking is prohibited. Owners, operators, managers, employers, or other persons who own or control a place open to the public or place of employment may seek to rebut the presumption that twenty feet is a reasonable distance by submitting an application to the department. The presumption will be rebutted if the applicant can show by clear and convincing evidence that, given the circumstances presented by the location of entrances, exits, windows that open, ventilation intakes, or other factors, smoke will not infiltrate into the place open to the public or place of employment.

(b) Satisfactory proof of compliance with the signage requirements of section 328J-9 by a bar, business, nightclub, or restaurant shall be a prerequisite for renewal of the applicable class of liquor license as provided in section 281-17."

SECTION 4. Section 328J-9, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"[[]§328J‑9[]] Signs. (a) Clearly legible signs that include the words "Smoking Prohibited by Law" with letters of not less than one inch in height or the international "No Smoking" symbol, consisting of a pictorial representation of a burning cigarette enclosed in a red circle with a red bar across it, shall be clearly and conspicuously posted in and at the entrance to every place open to the public and place of employment where smoking is prohibited by this chapter by the owner, operator, manager, or other person in control of that place. Signs shall also include notification of the distance requirements of section 328J-6, where applicable.

(b) Compliance with subsection (a) by a bar, business, nightclub, or restaurant shall be a prerequisite for renewal of the applicable class of liquor license as provided in section 281-61."

SECTION 5. Section 328J-11, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:

"(a) Enforcement of compliance with this chapter shall be under the concurrent jurisdiction of the department[.] and the liquor commission."

SECTION 6. Section 328J-12, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsections (f) and (g) to read as follows:

"(f) A person who owns, manages, operates, or otherwise controls any place or facility designated by this chapter and fails to comply with this chapter shall be guilty of a violation and fined:

(1) Not more than [~~$100~~] $500 for a first violation;

(2) Not more than [~~$200~~] $1,000 for a second violation within one year of the date of the first violation; and

(3) Not more than [~~$500~~] $2,000 for each additional violation within one year of the date of the preceding violation.

(g) In addition to the fines established by this section, violation of this chapter by a person who owns, manages, operates, or otherwise controls any place or facility designated by this chapter may result in the suspension or revocation of any permit or license issued to the person or the place for the premises on which the violation occurred. A third violation of this chapter shall result in the revocation of a liquor license issued under chapter 281 to the person or the place for the premises on which the violation occurred."

SECTION 7. Enforcement of this Act by the liquor commission as provided in section 1 of this Act shall not require the adoption of rules by the department of health.

SECTION 8. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 9. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2050.

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	56
TWENTY-FIFTH LEGISLATURE, 2009		S.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII