Evening star., 1937-02-11
BAN IS SOUGHT
ON TRANSFER Of
LIQUOR PERMITS
Board Strikes at "Racket''
in Asking Commits
SionerS to Act.
WOULD LIMIT NUMBER
OF c AND D LICENSES
Competition Created by Over.
supply of 0n-Sale Places Blamed
for Enforcement Trouble.

Striking at the racket" reputedly
developing in the sale of permits for
the bottled liquor business, the Alco-
holic Beverage Control Board today
asked the Commissioners to seek an
amendment to the liquor act to ban
all transfers of permits.
The recommendation was based on
Q finding that retail dealers have been
asking "exorbitant" prices when trans
3er of their permits to others is sought.
At the same time the board asked
the Commissioners to amend their
regulation to place limit of 300 on
the permitted number of class C
licenses for the sale Of liquor of all
kinds by the drink, and to place a
limit Of 400 on the number of class
D licenses for the sale by the drink
Of beer and light wines.
The board held the major diff
Guilty in enforcement has been with
class c and D licensees, blaming this
on undue competition created by Pc
riodic oversupply of on-sale places
selling either liquor or beer and light
wine.
Transfers" Troublesome.
The question of transfers" of per-
mits has plagued the board for two
years.
During that time there has been a
limit OF 400 on the number of class
A ncenses-for the sale of bottled
liquors Of all kinds. During the last
year, when the Commissioners ordered
renewal OF this limit, they directed
that the maximum be cut down to
300 as soon as possible.
This would be accomplished grad
ually as permits were revoked for
cause. Officials of the board have
been advised that holders of the off,
sale liquor permits at times have de-
manded as much as from $4,000 to
$4,000 Tor the transfer of their per-
mits to other retail dealers who wish
to take them over.
Therefore, in suggesting limits to
be placed by the Commissioners on
the number of c and D licenses, the
A. B. c. Board recommended that
Congress be asked to amend the act
70 forbid all transfers.
The board said IT, felt tf1fs Sstas
very necessary as it would do away
with the racket which has developed
In sale Of licenses for exorbitant
prices" It said the proposed amend
ment is substantially the same as
that in New York.
The amendment proposes that no
licenses shall he transferable or as
signable to another person. It also
provides that no license could be
pledged or deposited as collateral Sc
curity for any loan and that any
contract providing such pledge or de-
posit would be held void.
Special Fee Arrangement.
In the case of bankruptcy or death
or other disability to the license the
amendment would provide that the
receiver, assignee, committee or exec
utor could be permitted to operate for
the remainder of the license period. If
approved by the board. A special fee
Of $25 would be charged in such cases.
The proposed limits of 300 for Class
c licenses would not apply to hotels,
bona fide clubs, passenger-carrying
marine vessels or club or dining cars
OF the railroads, nor would the pro-
posed limit of 400 for the Glass D
licenses apply to these retailers.
The Commissioners were told during
the license year from February /,
1896, to January 81, 1887, there were
issued 338 retailers Class c and 448
retailers Glass D, out of total num-
Der OF licenses Of all classes of 1918.
The percentage of class c and class
d licenses to the total was Al per
cent.
During the same license year, the
total number of licensees convicted of
violations of the law and regulations
was Sc, and the number of retailers
class @ and D licensees convicted was
80, or 70 per cent of the total con-
victions.
1T would appear from the above
that the percentage of violations of
the law of retailers class c. and D
licensees Is much higher than the
other classes Of licensees and the
board believes that due to the eco
nomic stress of too much competition
the licensees are encouraged to chisel.
After the Commissioners limited tho
number Of retailers class A licenses,
the number of violations by such
Licences was reduced from 81 in 1884
to 6 in 1885,"