2012 Connecticut General Statutes
Title 30 - Intoxicating Liquors
Chapter 545 - Liquor Control Act
Section 30-51 - Sales in dwelling houses regulated.

(a) No permit may be issued for the sale of alcoholic liquor in any building, a portion of which will not be used as the permit premises, unless the application therefor is accompanied by an affidavit signed and sworn to by the applicant, stating that access from the portion of the building that will not be used as the permit premises to the portion of the building that will be used as the permit premises is effectually closed, unless the Department of Consumer Protection endorses upon such application that it has dispensed with such affidavit for reasons considered by it good and satisfactory and also endorses thereon such reasons. If any way of access from the other portion of such building to the portion used as the permit premises is opened, after such permit is issued, without the consent of the Department of Consumer Protection endorsed on such permit, such permit shall thereupon become and be forfeited, with or without notice from the Department of Consumer Protection, and shall be null and void. If such applicant or any permittee or any backer thereof opens, causes to be opened, permits to be opened or allows to remain open, at any time during the term for which such permit is issued, any way of access from any portion of a building not part of the permit premises to any other portion of such building that is the permit premises, without the written consent of the Department of Consumer Protection endorsed on such permit, such persons or backers shall be subject to the penalties provided in section 30-113. The Department of Consumer Protection shall require every applicant for a permit to sell alcoholic liquor to state under oath whether any portion of the building in which it is proposed to carry on such business will not be used as the permit premises; and, if so, said Department of Consumer Protection shall appoint a suitable person to examine the premises and to see that any and all access between the portion so to be used for the sale of alcoholic liquor and the portion not so used is effectually closed, and may designate the manner of such closing, and, if necessary, order seals to be placed so that such way of access cannot be opened without breaking the seals, and the breaking or removal of such seals or other methods of preventing access, so ordered and provided, shall be prima facie evidence of a violation of this section. The above provisions shall not apply to any premises operating under a hotel permit, or any premises operating under a restaurant permit, which premises are located in or attached to a motel, and shall not apply to any entrance to a building in which is located premises operating under a tavern permit, which entrance opens into the rear or side yard of such tavern premises and is used solely as an emergency exit or for the delivery of goods to, or carrying or conveying goods from, any permit premises.

(b) “Motel” means every building or other structure kept, used, maintained, advertised or held out to the public to be a place where sleeping accommodations are offered for pay to transient guests, usually, but not limited to, motorists, but is not a place where food is served at all times or where kitchen and dining room facilities necessarily exist.

(1949 Rev., S. 4268; P.A. 77-614, S. 165, 587, 610; P.A. 78-80, S. 2, 3, 4; 78-303, S. 80, 85, 136; P.A. 80-482, S. 4, 170, 191, 195, 345, 348; P.A. 93-139, S. 52; P.A. 95-195, S. 52, 83; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 146(d); P.A. 04-169, S. 17; 04-189, S. 1.)

History: P.A. 77-614 replaced liquor control commission with division of liquor control within the department of business regulation, effective January 1, 1979; P.A. 78-80 stated that provisions of section do not apply with respect to restaurants located in or attached to a motel; P.A. 78-303 modified provisions of P.A. 77-614 re division of liquor control as successor to liquor control commission; P.A. 80-482 made division of liquor control an independent department and abolished the department of business regulation, overriding provision of same act which would have placed the division within the public safety department; P.A. 93-139 extended the separation requirement to all permit premises previously applicable to dwellings and lodging houses, made technical changes and added Subsec. (b) defining “motel”; P.A. 95-195 amended Subsec. (a) by substituting Department of Consumer Protection for Department of Liquor Control, effective July 1, 1995; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6 and P.A. 04-169 replaced Department of Consumer Protection with Department of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective July 1, 2004; P.A. 04-189 repealed Sec. 146 of June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, thereby reversing the merger of the Departments of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective June 1, 2004.