LCLB REPORT
by Karen Ayers

Legislation Before the House
The provincial legislature is in session until May 31. Solicitor General John Les introduced Bill 16, the Public Safety and Solicitor General Statutes Amendment Act, which affects a number of provincial statutes including the Liquor Control and Licensing Act.

Changes proposed will enhance BC’s efforts to reduce underage drinking. Any minor caught using false identification will now be subject to a $115 fine issued by police, and payment will be tied to the issuance and renewal of driver or vehicle licences. This will be a deterrent for minors, who currently face few, if any, consequences for trying to buy liquor with fake ID. Another change will strengthen enforcement of BC’s liquor laws by clarifying that liquor inspectors and police can inspect licensed establishments outside of regular operating hours. This will allow enforcement officials to deal with service to minors, over-service, and other illegal activities that may take place after closing time.

ID Regulations 
As you are likely aware, government rescinded regulations requiring licensees to ask anyone who appears to be under the age of 25 for two pieces of ID because they were difficult to enforce, and did not result in sustained long-term compliance. It is still against the law to sell, serve or supply liquor to a minor. If asked, patrons must still show two pieces of ID to prove they are of legal drinking age. We have designed new signs to this effect, and will be sending them out to all licensees in May.

Selling Your Business and Transferring Your Licence to a New Owner
Until now, individuals buying an existing licensed establishment have been able to operate under the existing licence for up to six weeks, provided they get the necessary paperwork in and apply to transfer the liquor licence within that timeframe. However, allowing someone to operate a licensed establishment without a licence puts the integrity of our licensing system at risk. It puts you at risk as well, since you are responsible for any contraventions that occur until the licence is transferred, even if you are no longer operating the business. Beginning in 2008, the LCLB will not allow new owners to operate a business until we have approved the transfer and issued the licence to the new owner. We’ll be providing more information to you on this change over the coming months.

Serving It Right 
We are working closely with go2 and members of the hospitality industry on changes to Serving It Right. The new program puts more emphasis on signs of intoxication, your legal liability, duty of care on and off premises, and the necessity to create and enforce responsible beverage service policies. You can read more details about the new program on page 30.

Licensee Retail Stores
Although LRSs are licensed by LCLB, certain aspects of the operation of these stores have traditionally been administered by the LDB through authorization agreements between the LDB and the licensee. 
This changed in March 2007, and LRS applicants no longer have to sign a LDB authorization document when applying for an LRS. We expect that this change will reduce the time required to process a licence by two weeks in the case of new LRSs, and by one week for ownership changes and relocations of existing LRSs.
Our March 27th policy directive on this topic (07-03) also noted that LRSs:
1. must not offer for sale kegs of draught beer larger than 30 litres
2. must not store any liquor off-site 
3. must not sell liquor to customers at a price that is below the LRS
purchase price
4. may not sell to licensees, special occasion licence holders or other
types of liquor establishments, and
5. in accordance with Ministry of Environment regulations, must accept
a minimum of 24 empty container returns per person per day.