MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2024

By: Representatives Turner, Hulum To: Ways and Means

HOUSE BILL NO. 776

(As Sent to Governor)

1 AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 67-1-7, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO

2 PROVIDE THAT MUNICIPALITIES THAT HAVE VOTED IN FAVOR OF COMING OUT
3 FROM UNDER THE DRY LAW MAY ENFORCE SUCH PROPER RULES AND
4 REGULATIONS FOR FIXING ZONES AND TERRITORIES TO PROMOTE PUBLIC
5 HEALTH, MORALS, AND SAFETY, AS THEY MAY BY ORDINANCE PROVIDE; TO
6 PROVIDE THAT THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF ANY COUNTY THAT HAS VOTED
7 IN FAVOR OF COMING OUT FROM UNDER THE DRY LAW MAY MAKE SIMILAR
8 RULES AND REGULATIONS AS TO TERRITORY OUTSIDE OF MUNICIPALITIES;
9 TO PROVIDE THAT MUNICIPALITIES MAY ENFORCE SUCH PROPER LOCATION OF
10 PACKAGE RETAILER STORES WITHIN THE MUNICIPALITY BY APPLICATION OF
11 A PROPERLY ADOPTED ZONING ORDINANCE; TO AMEND SECTION 67-1-37,
12 MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT THE ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE
13 CONTROL DIVISION OF THE DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE SHALL NOT ISSUE ANY
14 PERMIT WHICH WOULD CONFLICT WITH ANY ZONING ORDINANCE LEGALLY
15 ADOPTED BY THE GOVERNING AUTHORITIES OF ANY MUNICIPALITY OR RULE
16 OR REGULATION OF ANY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF ANY COUNTY AS SET
17 FORTH IN SECTION 67-1-7; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
18 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

19 SECTION 1. Section 67-1-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is

20 amended as follows:

21 67-1-7. (1) Except as otherwise provided in Section 67-9-1

22 for the transportation and possession of limited amounts of

23 alcoholic beverages for the use of an alcohol processing

24 permittee, and subject to all of the provisions and restrictions

25 contained in this article, the manufacture, sale, distribution,

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26 and transportation of alcoholic beverages shall be lawful, subject

27 to the restrictions hereinafter imposed, in those counties and

28 municipalities of this state in which, at a local option election

29 called and held for that purpose under the provisions of this

30 article, a majority of the qualified electors voting in such

31 election shall vote in favor thereof.

32 Beginning on April 16, 2021, except as otherwise provided in

33 Section 67-1-51 for holders of a caterer's permit, the

34 manufacture, sale and distribution of alcoholic beverages shall

35 not be permissible or lawful in counties except in (a)

36 incorporated municipalities located within such counties, (b)

37 qualified resort areas within such counties approved as such by

38 the department, or (c) clubs within such counties, whether within

39 a municipality or not. However, any permits issued by the

40 department between July 1, 2020, and April 15, 2021, for the

41 manufacture, sale and distribution of alcoholic beverages, whether

42 or not issued to permittees in such municipalities, qualified

43 resort areas or clubs, shall be eligible for renewal on or after

44 April 16, 2021.

45 The manufacture, sale, distribution and possession of native

46 wines or native spirits shall be lawful in any location within any

47 such county except those locations where the manufacture, sale or

48 distribution is prohibited by law other than this section or by

49 regulations of the department. However, notwithstanding this

50 provision, municipalities that have voted in favor of coming out

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51 from under the dry law may enforce such proper rules and

52 regulations for fixing zones and territories to promote public

53 health, morals, and safety, as they may by ordinance provide. The

54 board of supervisors of any county that has voted in favor of

55 coming out from under the dry law may make such rules and

56 regulations as to territory outside of municipalities as are

57 herein provided for municipalities.

58 Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law,

59 municipalities may enforce such proper location of package

60 retailer stores within the municipality by application of a

61 properly adopted zoning ordinance.

62 (2) Notwithstanding the foregoing, within any state park or

63 any state park facility that has been declared a qualified resort

64 area by the department, and within any qualified resort area as

65 defined under Section 67-1-5(o)(iii), an on-premises retailer's

66 permit may be issued for the qualified resort area, and the

67 permittee may lawfully sell alcoholic beverages for consumption on

68 his licensed premises regardless of whether or not the county or

69 municipality in which the qualified resort area is located has

70 voted in favor of coming out from under the dry law, and it shall

71 be lawful to receive, store, sell, possess and consume alcoholic

72 beverages on the licensed premises, and to sell, distribute and

73 transport alcoholic beverages to the licensed premises. Moreover,

74 the governing authorities of a municipality in which a qualified

75 resort area defined under Section 67-1-5(o)(iii)5, 7, 21 or 46 is

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76 located, the Pearl River Valley Water Supply District Board which

77 governs the qualified resort area defined under Section

78 67-1-5(o)(iii)8.a.A, the board of supervisors of the county in

79 which the qualified resort area defined under Section

80 67-1-5(o)(iii)8.a.B and C is located, and the board of supervisors

81 of the county in which the qualified resort area defined under

82 Section 67-1-5(o)(iii)44 is located, may, by ordinance or

83 resolution, provide that package retailer's permits may be issued

84 in the applicable qualified resort area, and that it shall be

85 lawful to receive, store, sell, possess and distribute alcoholic

86 beverages in accordance with such package retailer's permits.

87 SECTION 2. Section 67-1-37, Mississippi Code of 1972, as

88 amended by House Bill No. 1525, 2024 Regular Session, is amended

89 as follows:

90 67-1-37. The Department of Revenue, under its duties and

91 powers with respect to the Alcoholic Beverage Control Division

92 therein, shall have the following powers, functions and duties:

93 (a) To issue or refuse to issue any permit provided for

94 by this article, or to extend the permit or remit in whole or any

95 part of the permit monies when the permit cannot be used due to a

96 natural disaster or act of God.

97 (b) To revoke, suspend or cancel, for violation of or

98 noncompliance with the provisions of this article, or the law

99 governing the production and sale of native wines or native

100 spirits, or any lawful rules and regulations of the department

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101 issued hereunder, or for other sufficient cause, any permit issued

102 by it under the provisions of this article. The department shall

103 also be authorized to suspend the permit of any permit holder for

104 being out of compliance with an order for support, as defined in

105 Section 93-11-153. The procedure for suspension of a permit for

106 being out of compliance with an order for support, and the

107 procedure for the reissuance or reinstatement of a permit

108 suspended for that purpose, and the payment of any fees for the

109 reissuance or reinstatement of a permit suspended for that

110 purpose, shall be governed by Section 93-11-157 or Section

111 93-11-163, as the case may be. If there is any conflict between

112 any provision of Section 93-11-157 or Section 93-11-163 and any

113 provision of this article, the provisions of Section 93-11-157 or

114 Section 93-11-163, as the case may be, shall control.

115 (c) To prescribe forms of permits and applications for

116 permits and of all reports which it deems necessary in

117 administering this article.

118 (d) To fix standards, not in conflict with those

119 prescribed by any law of this state or of the United States, to

120 secure the use of proper ingredients and methods of manufacture of

121 alcoholic beverages.

122 (e) To issue rules regulating the advertising of

123 alcoholic beverages in the state in any class of media and

124 permitting advertising of the retail price of alcoholic beverages.

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125 (f) To issue reasonable rules and regulations, not

126 inconsistent with the federal laws or regulations, requiring

127 informative labeling of all alcoholic beverages offered for sale

128 within this state and providing for the standards of fill and

129 shapes of retail containers of alcoholic beverages; however, such

130 containers shall not contain less than fifty (50) milliliters by

131 liquid measure.

132 (g) Subject to the provisions of subsection (3) of

133 Section 67-1-51, to issue rules and regulations governing the

134 issuance of retail permits for premises located near or around

135 schools, colleges, universities, churches and other public

136 institutions, and specifying the distances therefrom within which

137 no such permit shall be issued. The Alcoholic Beverage Control

138 Division shall not issue a package retailer's or on-premises

139 retailer's permit for the sale or consumption of alcoholic

140 beverages in or on the campus of any public school. The Alcoholic

141 Beverage Control Division shall not issue a package retailer's

142 permit for the sale of alcoholic beverages in or on the campus of

143 any community or junior college, college or university.

144 (h) To adopt and promulgate, repeal and amend, such

145 rules, regulations, standards, requirements and orders, not

146 inconsistent with this article or any law of this state or of the

147 United States, as it deems necessary to control the manufacture,

148 importation, transportation, distribution, delivery and sale of

149 alcoholic liquor, whether intended for beverage or nonbeverage use

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150 in a manner not inconsistent with the provisions of this article

151 or any other statute, including the native wine and native spirit

152 laws.

153 (i) To call upon other administrative departments of

154 the state, county and municipal governments, county and city

155 police departments and upon prosecuting officers for such

156 information and assistance as it may deem necessary in the

157 performance of its duties.

158 (j) To prepare and submit to the Governor during the

159 month of January of each year a detailed report of its official

160 acts during the preceding fiscal year ending June 30, including

161 such recommendations as it may see fit to make, and to transmit a

162 like report to each member of the Legislature of this state upon

163 the convening thereof at its next regular session.

164 (k) To inspect, or cause to be inspected, any premises

165 where alcoholic liquors intended for sale are manufactured,

166 stored, distributed or sold, and to examine or cause to be

167 examined all books and records pertaining to the business

168 conducted therein.

169 (l) To investigate the administration of laws in

170 relation to alcoholic liquors in this and other states and any

171 foreign countries, and to recommend from time to time to the

172 Governor and through him to the Legislature of this state such

173 amendments to this article, if any, as it may think desirable.

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174 (m) To designate hours and days when alcoholic

175 beverages may be sold in different localities in the state which

176 permit such sale.

177 (n) To assign employees to posts of duty at locations

178 where they will be most beneficial for the control of alcoholic

179 beverages and to take any other action concerning persons employed

180 under this article as authorized by law and taken in accordance

181 with the rules, regulations and procedures of the State Personnel

182 Board.

183 (o) To enforce the provisions made unlawful by Chapter

184 3, Title 67 and Section 97-5-49.

185 (p) To delegate its authority under this article to the

186 Alcoholic Beverage Control Division, its director or any other

187 officer or employee of the department that it deems appropriate.

188 (q) To prescribe and charge a fee to defray the costs

189 of shipping alcoholic beverages, provided that such fee is

190 determined in a manner provided by the department by rules and/or

191 regulations adopted in accordance with the Mississippi

192 Administrative Procedures Law.

193 The Alcoholic Beverage Control Division shall not issue any

194 permit which would conflict with any zoning ordinance legally

195 adopted by the governing authorities of any municipality or rule

196 or regulation of any board of supervisors of any county as set

197 forth in Section 67-1-7(1).

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198 SECTION 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from

199 and after July 1, 2024.

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PAGE 9 (BS\JAB) Law; revise certain provisions regarding
authority of municipalities and counties under.