State License to Sell Alcoholic Beverages
The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) issues alcoholic beverage licenses (colloquially known as Liquor Licenses). The most common types of licenses include on-sale (for consumption on-site) and off-sale (for consumption off-site) licenses for convenience stores, large grocery store, restaurants, beer manufacturer (brewery), wine grower (winery) and bar/taverns, brew pub/micro-brewery, and bar/night clubs. Visit the State of California Alcoholic Beverage Control Website for information on the various types of licenses and application form/process.
The applicant/licensee is advised to contact Planning & Environmental Review (PER) promptly following license application with ABC; ABC requests that any required entitlements and approvals from the County (such as Conditional Use Permits) be obtained prior to submitting a liquor license application to ABC.
Any establishment that may need a Type 1 ("Beer Manufacturer"), 2 ("Winegrower"), or 48 ("On Sale General - Public Premises") ABC license is highly advised to contact PER as the uses associated with these licenses are typically subject to Conditional Use Permits, use standards, and/or locational standards.
Customers with an ABC-255 "Zoning Affadavit Form" that must be reviewed by Planning are advised to email the form with Questions 1, 2, and 4-8 filled out to sacplan@saccounty.gov. The form may also be reviewed by a planner in person at our Downtown Counter.
Letter of Convenience and/or Necessity (PCN)
Each County in California is allotted a specific number of off-sale licenses, identified by census tract and determined based on population. When the authorized licenses are exhausted in a census tract, ABC will conclude that a new application for a liquor license would result in over-concentration, and is therefore required by state law to deny the application for license. Similarly, ABC will deny an application for a license if the establishment is located within an area determined by the County Sheriff's Department to be a high crime area. However, if the applicant can demonstrate to the local governing authority (Sacramento County Board of Supervisors) that the public would benefit from the presence of an additional alcohol sales outlet and obtain a Letter of Public Convenience and Necessity (PCN) from the Board of Supervisors, ABC will thereupon issue a license. The most common ABC licenses that generally require a PCN letter include off-sale licenses #20 or #21, and on-sale licenses #40, #42 or #48.
Sacramento County's process for issuing a PCN Letter is codified in the Sacramento County Code, Chapter 4.60 (Regulations of Alcohol Sales). The process involves a public hearing before the local Community Planning Advisory Council (CPAC) and the Board of Supervisors, with noticing to the public and opportunity to be heard.
Application For Applicants Seeking a Public Convenience and Necessity (PCN) Letter
More Information
If you need more information or an application about Sacramento County’s PCN letter process, please email sacplan@saccounty.gov.
