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An Act To Improve Local Control over Bars
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 28-A MRSA §4, sub-§1,  as amended by PL 2001, c. 21, §1, is further amended to read:
 
1. Hours for sale of liquor.   Except as provided in paragraphs A to DE, licensees may sell or deliver liquor from 6 a.m. on any day until 1 a.m. of the following day.
 
A.  Licensees may not sell liquor on Sunday between the hours of 6 a.m. and 9 a.m.
 
B.  Licensees may sell liquor on January 1st of any year from 12 midnight to 2 a.m.
 
(1) In areas in which liquor may be sold except on Sundays, if January 1st falls on a Monday, licensees may sell or deliver liquor between 9 p.m. Sunday, December 31st and 2 a.m. January 1st, notwithstanding any local option decisions to the contrary.
 
D.  Wholesale licensees may sell or deliver liquor to licensed establishments from 4 a.m. on any day until 1 a.m. the following day.
 
E.  A municipality may enact a local ordinance that establishes different closing times.
Sec. 2. 28-A MRSA §653, sub-§2, ¶B,  as enacted by PL 1987, c. 45, Pt. A, §4, is further amended to read:
 
B.  Noncompliance of the licensed premises or its use with any local zoning ordinance or other land use ordinance not directly related to liquor control except a local ordinance that establishes a closing time or times different from the time established in section 4;
 
SUMMARY
Current law sets the closing time for businesses that are licensed for the on-premises consumption of alcohol. This bill allows municipalities to establish a different time or times through the enactment of a local ordinance. This bill provides that a license may not be denied for noncompliance with a municipal ordinance that sets a different time of closing.