Opinion ID: 1928966
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: long-form application

Text: The application and renewal process for liquor licenses is governed by the Act. The sections within the Act which are relevant to the present case are Neb.Rev.Stat. §§ 53-135 and 53-135.02 (Reissue 1993). Section 53-135 sets forth the manner of application for renewal as follows: A retail or bottle club license issued by the commission and outstanding may be automatically renewed by the commission without formal application upon payment of the state registration fee and license fee if payable to the commission. The payment shall be an affirmative representation and certification by the licensee that all answers contained in an application, if submitted, would be the same in all material respects as the answers contained in the last previous application. The commission may at any time require a licensee to submit an application, and the commission shall at any time require a licensee to submit an application if requested in writing to do so by the local governing body. Section 53-135.02 states as follows: Any licensee may renew his, her, or its license at the expiration thereof in the manner set forth in section 53-135 if the licensee is then qualified to receive a license and the premises for which such renewal license is sought are the same premises licensed under the license to be renewed and are suitable for such purpose. The renewal privilege provided for in this section shall not be construed as a vested right which shall in any case prevent the commission from decreasing the number of licenses to be issued within its jurisdiction. The Commission required the Latin Club to file a long-form application and, eventually, denied the application. On appeal, decisions of the Nebraska Liquor Control Commission are reviewed by an appellate court de novo on the record. No Frills Supermarket v. Nebraska Liq. Control Comm., 246 Neb. 822, 523 N.W.2d 528 (1994). When reviewing a question of law, an appellate court reaches a conclusion independent of the lower court's ruling. Nelson v. Metropolitan Utilities Dist, 249 Neb. 956, 547 N.W.2d 133 (1996). With regard to an appeal brought under the Act, we stated in R.D.B., Inc. v. Nebraska Liquor Control Comm., 229 Neb. 178,182, 425 N.W.2d 884, 887 (1988), that the district court may not disturb the decision of the commission unless it was arbitrary and unreasonable. In the case at bar, the district court reversed the order of the Commission, holding that as a renewal applicant, the Latin Club should not have been required to file a long-form application. The court concluded that since the record did not reflect any basis for the Commission to require the long-form application, the Commission's action was arbitrary and unreasonable. In so doing, the district court relied upon our decision in Pump & Pantry, Inc. v. City of Grand Island, 233 Neb. 191, 444 N.W.2d 312 (1989). In Pump & Pantry, Inc., we held that § 53-135 (Reissue 1984) and Neb. Rev.Stat. § 53-150 (Reissue 1988) (§ 53-150 now codified at § 53-135.02) established a formal distinction between a first-time applicant for a liquor license and a renewal applicant. The plaintiffs brought an action for declaratory judgment in the district court for Lancaster County against the Commission and the City of Grand Island. The plaintiffs sought a declaration that the provisions of the Act authorized and required only a limited inquiry for renewal of a liquor license. In Pump & Pantry, Inc., the City of Grand Island requested that the Commission require a licensed retailer to submit a longform application for renewal of an existing license. At issue were the requirements that a liquor licensee had to satisfy before a license was renewed pursuant to §§ 53-135 and 53-150. The plaintiffs claimed that for renewal of a liquor license, the Act permitted only a limited inquiry regarding whether the renewal applicant had satisfied the liquor license requirements existing when the liquor license was initially issued. The City of Grand Island argued that since the requirements for issuance of a liquor license might change after initial issuance, a renewal applicant had to meet the current statutory standards for issuance of a renewal license. The district court granted summary judgment to the plaintiffs. On appeal, we held that the phrase renewal privilege in § 53-150 was a right or benefit granted in favor of a licensee seeking an extension or continuation of a previously issued license. We again recognized that a holder of a liquor license has a constitutionally protected interest in obtaining renewal of an existing license. See, also, Bosselman, Inc. v. State, 230 Neb. 471, 432 N.W.2d 226 (1988). We concluded that the legislative history and the language of §§ 53-135 and 53-150 disclosed a legislative intent to codify a practice of approving an application for continuation of an existing liquor license in the absence of a change of circumstances indicated on the licensee's renewal application. We held that under this codified practice, a licensee may renew a liquor license provided (1) the licensee is then qualified to receive a license, (2) the premises for which such renewal license is sought are the same premises designated in the initial license, and (3) the premises are suitable for the sale of alcoholic beverages in accordance with the initially issued license. An administrative agency is limited in authority to those powers granted to it by statute. See Bond v. Nebraska Liquor Control Comm., 210 Neb. 663, 316 N.W.2d 600 (1982). Thus, in the present case, without a showing by the City of Grand Island or the Commission that the Latin Club did not meet one of the renewal requirements set forth in §§ 53-135 and 53-135.02 (Reissue 1993), the Commission could not demand that the Latin Club submit a long-form application. The district court correctly determined that the Commission did not have authority to require the Latin Club to submit a long-form application in order to renew its liquor license.