HB 187: "An Act relating to holders of business license endorsements for sales of tobacco products."
00 HOUSE BILL NO. 187 01 "An Act relating to holders of business license endorsements for sales of tobacco 02 products." 03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04 * Section 1. AS 43.70.075(d) is amended to read: 05 (d) If a person who holds an endorsement issued under this section, or an 06 agent or an employee of a person who holds an endorsement issued under this section 07 acting within the scope of the agency or employment, has been convicted of violating 08 AS 11.76.100, 11.76.106, or 11.76.107, the department, after a hearing under (m) of 09 this section, shall suspend the endorsement for a period of 10 (1) 20 days and impose a civil penalty of $300 if the person has not 11 been previously convicted of violating AS 11.76.100, 11.76.106, or 11.76.107 and is 12 not otherwise subject to the sanctions described in (2) - (4) of this subsection; 13 (2) 45 days and impose a civil penalty of $500 if, within the 24 months 14 before the date of the department's notice under (m) of this section, the person, or an
01 agent or employee of the person while acting within the scope of the agency or 02 employment of the person, was convicted once of violating AS 11.76.100, 11.76.106, 03 or 11.76.107; 04 (3) 90 days and impose a civil penalty of $1,000 if, within the 24 05 months before the date of the department's notice under (m) of this section, the person, 06 or an agent or employee of the person while acting within the scope of the agency or 07 employment of the person, was convicted twice of violating AS 11.76.100, 11.76.106, 08 or 11.76.107, or a provision of this section or a regulation implementing this section 09 adopted under AS 43.70.090; or 10 (4) one year and impose a civil penalty of $2,500 if, within the 24 11 months before the date of the department's notice under (m) of this section, the person, 12 or an agent or employee of the person while acting within the scope of the agency or 13 employment of the person, was convicted more than twice of violating AS 11.76.100, 14 11.76.106, or 11.76.107. 15 * Sec. 2. AS 43.70.075(m) is amended to read: 16 (m) The department may initiate suspension of a business license endorsement 17 or the right to obtain a business license endorsement under this section by sending the 18 person subject to the suspension a notice by certified mail, return receipt requested, or 19 by delivering the notice to the person. The notice must contain information that 20 informs the person of the grounds for suspension, the length of any suspension sought, 21 and the person's right to administrative review. A suspension begins 30 days after 22 receipt of notice described in this subsection unless the person delivers a timely 23 written request for a hearing to the department in the manner provided by regulations 24 of the department. If a hearing is requested under this subsection, a hearing officer of 25 the office of administrative hearings (AS 44.64.010) shall determine the issues by 26 using the preponderance of the evidence test and shall, to the extent they do not 27 conflict with regulations adopted under AS 44.64.060, conduct the hearing in the 28 manner provided by regulations of the department. A hearing under this subsection is 29 limited to the following questions: 30 (1) was the person holding the business license endorsement, or an 31 agent or employee of the person while acting within the scope of the agency or
01 employment of the person, convicted by plea or judicial finding of violating 02 AS 11.76.100, 11.76.106, or 11.76.107; 03 (2) if the department does not allege a conviction of AS 11.76.100, 04 11.76.106, or 11.76.107, did the person, or an agent or employee of the person while 05 acting within the scope of the agency or employment of the person, violate a provision 06 of (a) or (g) of this section; 07 (3) within the 24 months before the date of the department's notice 08 under this subsection, was the person, or an agent or employee of the person while 09 acting within the scope of the agency or employment of the person, convicted of 10 violating AS 11.76.100, 11.76.106, or 11.76.107 or adjudicated for violating a 11 provision of (a) or (g) of this section; 12 (4) did the person holding the business license endorsement 13 negligently violate AS 11.76.100, 11.76.106, or 11.76.107; in making this 14 determination, the hearing officer may consider whether the person holding the 15 business license endorsement had adopted and used an employee education, 16 compliance, and disciplinary program as provided in (t) of this section; 17 (5) any other evidence that might tend to mitigate or aggravate the 18 length of suspension and civil penalty; a period of suspension or civil penalty may 19 be reduced under this paragraph if the imposition of the full suspension or civil 20 penalty would not be in the public interest. 21 * Sec. 3. AS 43.70.075 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 22 (t) Based on evidence provided at the hearing under (m)(4) or (5) of this 23 section, the department may reduce the license suspension period under (d) of this 24 section if the person holding the business license endorsement establishes that, prior to 25 the date of the violation, the person had adopted and enforced a written policy against 26 selling cigarettes, cigars, tobacco, or products containing tobacco to a person under 19 27 years of age in violation of AS 11.76.100, informed the person's agents and employees 28 of the applicable laws and their requirements, required the employees to sign a form 29 that the employees had been informed of and understood the written policy and the 30 requirements of AS 11.76.100, required employees to verify the age of tobacco 31 product customers by means of photographic identification, and established and
01 enforced disciplinary sanctions for noncompliance. A reduction in the period of 02 suspension may not be granted more than twice in a 12-month period for any one 03 location. 04 (u) In lieu of a hearing under (m) of this section, the department and the 05 person holding a business license endorsement may agree to an informal disposition of 06 a suspension based on a violation of AS 11.76.100, 11.76.106, or 11.76.107. The 07 person holding the business license endorsement shall admit that a violation occurred 08 and punishment under this section is proper. The department may suspend the license 09 and impose the appropriate civil penalty under this section; the department shall 10 consider the fact that the violation is admitted and may reduce the period of 11 suspension based on the admission.