§271.2. Class A permit; definitions

            The commissioner shall issue the following four types of Class A retail permits for beverages of low alcoholic content:

            (1) Class A-General:

            (a) A Class A-General retail permit shall be issued only to a retail outlet where beverage alcohol is sold on the premises for consumption on the premises by paying customers. Such an establishment must be equipped with a backbar or similar equipment for public display and to inform the public of brands and flavors offered for sale.

            (b) A Class A-General retail establishment shall be staffed by a bartender whose primary duty is to open and/or prepare beverage alcohol products for consumption on the premises by paying customers, or prepared with an appropriate lid or cover on the container for take out service. Such an establishment must meet all state and local zoning requirements as set forth by the state and by parishes and municipalities where a Class A-General retail outlet is located.

            (c) Repealed by Acts 1995, No. 1016, §2.

            (d) A Class A-General retail permit shall be issued only to an establishment where the state law provides that no person under the age of eighteen years is allowed on the premises except as provided in R.S. 26:90(A)(8)(a).

            (e) Notwithstanding the provisions of Subparagraphs (a) through (d) of this Paragraph the commissioner shall not issue a Class A-General retail permit for beverages of low alcoholic content to a bona fide commercial film theater unless the bona fide commercial film theater complies with the requirements in R.S. 26:272(C)(1)(a), (b), and (c) and alcoholic beverage sales are physically segregated from all other concession sales and no one under the age of eighteen is allowed to enter the area where such alcoholic beverage sales are conducted.

            (f) Notwithstanding the provisions of Subparagraphs (a) through (e) of this Paragraph, the commissioner may issue a Class A-General retail permit for beverages of low alcoholic content to any retail establishment for consumption of beverages of low alcoholic content on or off the premises. Such establishment must meet all state and local zoning requirements as set forth by the state and by parishes and municipalities where the retail outlet is located. A Class A-General retail permit for beverages of low alcoholic content issued pursuant to the authority granted by this Subparagraph shall not be deemed or qualify as a prerequisite for the issuance of any other type license or permit issued by the state or any political subdivision thereof.

            (g) The licensed premises of a Class A-General retail permit shall be able to accommodate a minimum of twenty-five patrons and contain no less than three hundred seventy-five square feet of public habitable floor area.

            (h) A Class A-General retail establishment shall comply with the Louisiana Department of Health guidelines for the required number of public restrooms and their locations within the retail establishment and shall provide documentation of compliance from the office of public health.

            (i) Any Class A-General retail permit application submitted prior to September 1, 2001, shall not be required to meet the qualifications set forth in Subparagraph (g) of this Paragraph.

            (j) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary and subject to rules promulgated by the commissioner, a permit may be issued to a third party that has entered into a written agreement with a retail dealer for the delivery of alcoholic beverages pursuant to R.S. 26:308 if the third party and the written agreement meet all the requirements set forth in R.S. 26:308. Notwithstanding the provisions of R.S. 26:271(A)(2), the permit fee for the permit issued pursuant to this Subparagraph shall be one thousand five hundred dollars.

            (2) Class A-Restaurant:

            (a) A Class A-Restaurant permit shall be issued only to a "restaurant establishment" as defined by R.S. 26:272(C)(1) or a dinner theater as defined in R.S. 26:241, and issued to a facility in conjunction with a Class "R" restaurant permit under the provisions of R.S. 26:272.

            (b) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary and subject to rules promulgated by the commissioner, in addition to the authority to contract with a third-party delivery company or a third-party platform as provided in R.S. 26:308, a permit may be issued to a "restaurant establishment" enabling the delivery of restaurant prepared food and malt beverages, ready-to-drink beverages, sparkling wine, and still wine, as defined in R.S. 26:2 and 241 with its own employees or agents for which the retailer is required to file an Internal Revenue Service Form W-2 or 1099. Notwithstanding the provisions of R.S. 26:271(A)(2), the permit fee for the permit issued pursuant to this Subparagraph shall be two hundred fifty dollars.

            (3) Class A-Special:

            (a) A Class A-Special permit shall be issued to any facility which is situated on state-owned land, and which is being developed or operated by the state for public purposes, without the necessity for a local permit from the parish or municipality, notwithstanding the provisions of R.S. 26:81(B)(1) and (C), 273(A)(1), 281(B) and (C)(1), 582, and 595, if all other pertinent qualifications and conditions of this Title are satisfied, and such establishment meets all state zoning requirements as set forth by the state.

            (b)(i) The provisions of Subparagraph (a) of this Paragraph shall apply only to the Sabine River Authority Conference and Recreational Facility, located in Ward 3, Sabine Parish, Louisiana and shall be applicable only after the following proposition has been submitted to a local referendum election to the voters of Ward 3, Sabine Parish at the congressional general election to be held in 1994, with a favorable vote of a majority of votes cast, to wit:

"Shall the sale of alcoholic beverage of both high and low alcohol content for consumption on the premises be permitted at the Sabine River Authority Conference and Recreational Facility in Ward 3, Sabine Parish, Louisiana?"

            (ii) This Subparagraph shall be the sole and only enabling act necessary to call this election, notwithstanding the provisions of R.S. 26:587.

            (c) A Class A-Special permit shall be issued to the convention center facility located in the city of Natchitoches.

            (4) Class A-Restaurant-Conditional:

            (a) Any retail establishment holding a Class A-General permit issued pursuant to this Section may be issued a Class-A-Restaurant-Conditional permit provided it meets the requirements of R.S. 26:73(C)(1)(a), (b), (c), and (d) during the hours from 7:00 a.m. until 11:00 p.m. each day of operation.

            (b) Notwithstanding the provisions of R.S. 26:286(A)(3)(a) or any other law to the contrary, any establishment which qualifies and receives a Class-A-Restaurant-Conditional permit may permit any person under the age of eighteen on the premises between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m.

            (c) No additional fee shall be charged for the application or issuance of a Class-A-Restaurant-Conditional permit.

            Acts 1994, 3rd Ex. Sess., No. 63, §1, eff. July 7, 1994; Acts 1994, 3rd Ex. Sess., No. 130, §1, eff. July 7, 1994; Acts 1995, No. 1016, §2; Acts 1997, No. 378, §1; Acts 2001, No. 214, §1; Acts 2001, No. 1188, §1, eff. June 29, 2001; Acts 2006, No. 469, §1; Acts 2006, No. 803, §1; Acts 2010, No. 953, §1, eff. July 2, 2010; Acts 2012, No. 287, §1; Acts 2014, No. 777, §1, eff. July 1, 2014; Acts 2015, No. 382, §1; Acts 2019, No. 433, §1, eff. June 22, 2019; Acts 2020, No. 115, §1, eff. June 9, 2020; Acts 2021, No. 71, §1.