About Us
The Pitt County ABC Law Enforcement Division has 3 full-time officers dedicated to the enforcement of the North Carolina Alcohol Beverage Control Laws. ABC officers may arrest and take other investigative and enforcement actions for any criminal offenses; however, the primary responsibility of an ABC officer is the enforcement of the ABC Laws (NC General Statutes 18B) and the drug laws (Chapter 90 of the NC General Statutes). ABC officers also enforce the NC ABC Commission Administrative Rules and Regulations. ABC officers conduct compliance inspections and investigations of ABC permitted establishments. At times, officers may conduct an underage campaign where ABC establishments are checked to see if they are in compliance with refusing to sell alcohol to underage persons. If a violation is detected, the ABC officer will submit a violation report to the NC ABC Commission. ABC officers also work with ABC permitted establishments in helping educate their employees about responsible alcohol sales. Pitt County A.B.C strongly feels that educating the community about the responsibilities and consequences of dealing with alcohol is not only a duty but a privilege, which is why we offer a variety of classes to help further educate permittees, their employees, and the general public.
Our offices are located at:
2082-B Central Park Drive
Winterville, NC 28590
Legal
Alcohol Sales & Consumption:
Alcohol may not be sold or served to persons less than 21 years old.
Alcohol may not be possessed or consumed by persons less than 21 years old, regardless of where the alcohol is purchased. If a parent provides a minor alcohol, it is illegal and not allowed in your establishment.
Alcohol may not be sold or served to any person who is intoxicated.
Intoxicated persons are not allowed to consume alcoholic beverages on the licensed premises.
Alcohol may not be purchased with food stamps.
Happy Hours are not allowed. Free or reduced drink prices cannot be offered during limited hours. Special drink prices must be offered to all customers for the entire day and in all areas of the business.
Certain drink specials or promotions are not allowed: 2 for 1; buy 1, get 1 for a nickel; buy a meal, get a free drink; etc. are illegal.
Hours of Sale:
Alcohol can only be sold or served Monday-Saturday between 7am and 2am. On Sundays, alcohol can only be sold, served or consumed after Noon. Remember, some cities or counties may further restrict Sunday sales.
If you hold an on-premise permit, alcohol sales must end at 2am, but customers have until 2:30am to consume it. That means, you should have all tables, counters, bars, etc. cleared of alcohol by 2:30am.
No alcoholic beverage may be removed from the licensed premises at any time that alcohol sales are not allowed by law.
Business Responsibilities:
Prominently display your ABC permit at your business at all times.
No drugs (any controlled substance) are allowed on the licensed premises.
No gambling or gambling devices are allowed on the licensed premises.
No spirituous liquor is allowed unless you have the appropriate ABC permit.
Permits are not transferable, either person-person or location-location.
Customer Conduct -
Permitted businesses are responsible for the disorderly conduct of customers anywhere on their property including, parking lots and outdoor service areas. Customers who become loud, boisterous or disorderly may not be allowed to remain on the premises, they may be removed from premises for any behavior deemed unruly by the permitted business.
Business Records -
All permittees are required to maintain alcohol invoices and receipts on the premises for three years and make them readily available for inspection. These alcohol invoices and receipts must be kept separate from other invoices or receipts.
Remodeling -
If you wish to make changes to the physical setup of your business, you must get permission from the ABC Commission.
Lighting -
There should be sufficient lighting to read menus, avoid potential safety hazards and check I.D.s.
Employee Requirements:
No drinking on the job; employees cannot drink alcoholic beverages while on duty, even if the business is closed.
Hiring Restrictions:
Permit holders are responsible for any actions committed by their employee(s) during their hours of employment.
You cannot hire an employee to sell or serve alcoholic beverages who has been convicted of a felony of any kind within 3 years; convicted of an alcoholic beverage offense within 2 years (DWI is a traffic violation, not an ABC violation); or convicted of a misdemeanor controlled substance offense within 2 years.
Employee Age Requirements:
Businesses with any type of beer or wine permit must have an employee who is at least 18 years old or older in charge at all times. You cannot leave someone in charge who is younger than 18.
Business with any type of spirituous liquor permit must have an employee who is at least 21 years old or older in charge at all times. You cannot leave someone in charge who is younger than 21.
Permit holders with a Brown Bagging, Mixed Beverages, or Special Occasion permit must have a person in charge at all times who is at least 21 years old.
General Requirements:
Any location that holds permits for on-premises alcohol consumption must have at least two bathrooms in working order for public use.
On-Premise Permit Holders must recycle all recyclable beverage containers emptied and/or used on the premises.
No advertising bearing an alcoholic beverage brand name may be displayed outside your business or in the window of your licensed premises. Some of the words that are permissible are “Beer,” “Cold Beer,” “Draft Beer,” or “Wine.”
All spirituous liquor must be purchased from a designated ABC Store in your Area.
Every spirituous liquor bottle on the premises must have a mixed beverage tax stamp on it.
Mixed beverage tax stamps must be defaced as soon as the bottle has been emptied, and the bottle must be immediately disposed of. Once your bartender uses up all the liquor in a bottle, he should immediately deface the tax stamp and recycle the bottle (you can use a Sharpie marker to deface the stamp).
Refilling or marrying multiple spirituous liquor bottles into one bottle is illegal. You cannot take half-empty bottles of liquor and combine them into one bottle and/or refill an empty bottle.
A mixed drink must contain at least 1 oz. of liquor, unless a customer requests less.
All mixed beverages must be consumed on the permitted premises; “to-go” cups or sales are not allowed (this includes both individual drinks and/or by the bottle).
Pre-mixing of mixed beverages is allowed with the ABC Commission’s approval.
Amounts Allowed to be Served:
Only serve one drink at a time to a single customer for consumption. So, if someone wants to drink two beers during his dinner, you can only serve him one at a time; you cannot bring him both beers at one time. The only exception is that you may serve one shot and one beer together (boilermaker).
A pitcher of alcoholic beverages must be served to two or more customers.
A single carafe or bottle of wine is allowed to be sold to one person.
Partial bottles of wine may be re-corked or re-capped and taken off site by the customer during legal hours of sale.
Employee Age Requirements for On-Premise Businesses:
Mixed Beverage Permits - Bartenders or other employees who mix drinks containing spirituous liquor must be at least 21 years old.
Beer & Wine Permits - Servers who prepare, serve, sell or deliver alcoholic beverages must be at least 18 years old.
Minors (16 & 17 year olds) can work at a permitted business as long as they do not serve, prepare, sell or deliver any kind of alcoholic beverages. Be sure to follow all other employment laws involving minor employees as well.
Minors (16 & 17 year olds) may work at off-premise establishments (Beer & Wine Permits) in any capacity as long as the NC Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division rules are followed.
R.A.S.E.
Responsible Alcohol Sales Education
R.A.S.E. is a program that provides educational information to persons involved in the service and sale of alcoholic beverages. The class is limited to 20 students per class. Each class is 4 hours in length. Classes are instructed by experienced enforcement agents of the ABC Law Enforcement Division.
Each student will receive a certificate from the Pitt County ABC Board upon successful completion of the course and passing of the written exam.
The objective of this class is to educate the permittee/employee of:
- ABC Laws
- ABC Rules & Regulations
- Employee Responsibilities
- Liabilities of the permittee/employee
Class Emphasis On:
How to recognize signs of intoxicated persons.
Identifying underage persons.
Identifying altered/fictitious ID’s.
Acceptable forms of ID.
Amounts of alcohol that may be purchased.
Prohibited sales.
Hours of sale and consumption.
Penalties for violations.
Business and individual liability.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND R.A.S.E.?
Any permittee, manager, or employee of a licensed retail outlet involved in sale or service of alcoholic beverages. The general public can also attend.
HOW MUCH DOES R.A.S.E. COST?
There is NO CHARGE for the class for the general public. All handouts and books are provided. For court referred or mandated students the full rate of $50.00 applies.
WHERE IS R.A.S.E.?
R.A.S.E. is instructed at the Pitt County A.B.C. Law Enforcement offices located at 2082-B Central Park Drive, Winterville, NC 28590.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT R.A.S.E. CONTACT INVESTIGATOR RANDY D. ANDREWS
Contact Us:
Phone: 252-756-7459
Chief Randy D. Andrews
Ext: 110
randy.andrews@suddenlinkmail.com
Investigator Chad W. Roeder
Ext: 109
chad.roeder@suddenlinkmail.com
Investigator Chris Baker
Ext: 111
chris.baker@suddenlinkmail.com
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q: What is the age requirement regarding alcoholic beverages? A: One must be 21 years of age to possess, consume, or purchase any alcoholic beverage. This age requirement is consistent with all 50 States.
Q: What is the employee age requirement regarding the sale of alcoholic beverages? A: Persons holding retail Malt Beverage, Unfortified Wine, and Fortified Wine Permits shall have an employee who is at least 18 years old in charge of the licensed premises at all times. Persons holding Brownbagging, Mixed Beverage, and Special Occasions Permits shall have an employee who is at 21 years old in charge of the licensed premises at all times. No person under the age of 21 may be employed by any permittee to mix drinks containing spirituous liquor.
Q: What are the lawful hours regarding the sale of alcoholic beverages? A: A permitted outlet may sale alcoholic beverages during the following times: Monday – Saturday 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. Sunday 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m.
North Carolina Law requires all ABC Stores to close no later than 9:00 p.m. Monday Through Saturday, and to remain closed on Sundays.
Q: How much alcohol may I purchase at one time? A: Without a permit, a person may purchase at one time:
- Not more than 80 liters of malt beverages.
- Any amount of draft malt beverages.
- Not more than 50 liters of unfortified wine.
- Not more than 8 liters of either fortified wine or spirituous liquor, or 8 liters of the two combined. With a purchase-transportation permit, a person may purchase and transport the following amounts of alcoholic beverages:
- A maximum of 100 liters of unfortified wine.
- A maximum of 40 liters of either fortified wine or spirituous liquor, or 40 liters of the two combined.
- The amount specified on the permit for a mixed beverage permittee. A purchase-transportation permit may be obtained at no cost from the Wake County ABC Office or from any Wake County ABC Store.
Q: Who can sell alcoholic beverages? A: It shall be unlawful for any person or business to sell or possess for sale any alcoholic beverage without first obtaining the applicable ABC permit and revenue license.
Q: How do I obtain a permit to sale alcoholic beverages? A: All permits to sell alcoholic beverages are issued by the North Carolina ABC Commission. You may contact them by phone at (919) 779-0700 or visit their website at www.abc.nc.gov
*Once your permit has been issued you must contact your local government offices (city and county) for the appropriate revenue licenses.*