Modernisation de la Régie des alcools, des courses et des jeux
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Government announcement
21 February 2018

Modernization of the Régie des alcools, des courses et des jeux

Modernisation de la Régie des alcools, des courses et des jeux

🍻🍷La modernisation de la Régie des alcools, des courses et des jeux nécessite une révision de la Loi sur les permis d’…

Posted by Martin Coiteux on Wednesday, February 21, 2018

Nous avons mis beaucoup d'énergie à faire en sorte que les consultations menées et le travail d'analyse qui en a découlé…

Posted by André Drolet on Thursday, February 22, 2018

A bill aiming to make people’s and permit holders’ lives easier

Québec City, February 21, 2018. – Martin Coiteux, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Land Occupancy, Minister of Public Security and Minister responsible for the Montréal region, introduced Bill 170 in the National Assembly, in collaboration with André Drolet, MNA for Jean-Lesage and Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister for Small and Medium Enterprises, Regulatory Streamlining and Regional Economic Development. This bill aims to modernize the legal framework governing liquor permits and change some legislative provisions regarding alcoholic beverages.

To make people’s lives easier

The bill proposes concrete measures to make people’s lives easier:

  • Extend the hours during which minors are allowed on bar terraces with a parent present (while still not allowing consumption and sale of alcohol) to 11 p.m. instead of 8 p.m.;
  • Extend the hours when alcohol can be sold in grocery stores (starting at 7 a.m. instead of 8 a.m.);
  • Authorize and control the practices in winemaking and brewing centres for people making wine and beer for personal use;
  • Authorize alcohol consumption in the communal areas of tourist accommodation establishments;
  • Relax the conditions for event permits;
  • Introduce a delivery permit to adapt to new market realities.

To make permit holders’ lives easier

The bill also proposes measures to make permit holders’ lives easier:

  • Possibility of selling and serving alcohol without a meal in a restaurant;
  • Simplification of permits to make them more “customized”:
    • Creation of two new permits: the accessory permit (covering all situations where tourist, social, family, sporting or cultural activities are the establishment’s main focus and where selling alcohol is only secondary to these. For example: goods and services businesses or festivals) and the delivery permit;
    • Creation of options that can be added to some permits: “caterer,” “service,” “no minors,” “domestic manufacture”;
    • Repeal of the “club permit,” “Man and his World” permit and “Olympic Grounds” permit.
  • Possibility for a holder to use a permit seasonally with cost modulations;
  • End of the requirement of a stamp on bottles used for decorative purposes;
  • Advance preparation of mixes and extension of the times during which carafes of wine are allowed, for those with permits authorizing the sale and serving of alcoholic beverages for consumption on site;
  • Abolition of the requirement of a device preventing access to alcohol outside the hours of operation;
  • Possibility of awarding an alcohol permit to holders with a work permit instead of requiring permanent residence.

For responsible consumption

In order to reward alcohol permit holders’ good practices regarding responsible consumption, the Régie des alcools, des courses et des jeux (RACJ) will be granting awards of excellence to highlight and promote the best initiatives in the alcoholic beverage industry, along with the introduction of this bill. The bill will also allow for:

  • The introduction of financial administrative sanctions for negligence in promotions and advertising;
  • The obligation for permit holders and business administrators to go through training on responsible alcohol consumption. The requirements for an establishment’s personnel will be determined by a regulation.

Quotes:

To modernize the RACJ, we needed to review the Act Respecting Liquor Permits to create a new model that’s more flexible and easier to adapt to the changes in society. To maximize this new model’s flexibility, to benefit citizens and permit holders, the bill will work through regulation instead of legislation to control the sale and serving of alcoholic beverages. Other proposed measures could also reinforce the importance of responsible alcohol consumption.

– Martin Coiteux, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Land Occupancy, Minister of Public Security and Minister responsible for the Montréal region

Businesses linked to the sale and serving of alcohol make up a significant industry in Quebec, in all its regions. Last June, considerable easing of the regulations was announced with the introduction of a single permit for permit holding companies. Today, with this bill, we want to take another step toward reducing the administrative burden on small and medium-sized businesses and lowering costs for permit holders.

– André Drolet, Member for Jean-Lesage and Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister for Small and Medium Enterprises, Regulatory Streamlining and Regional Economic Development

The government is proud to propose the modernization of the regulatory framework of Quebec’s alcoholic beverage industry. This will contribute to its growth and support the economic development of each of Quebec’s regions.

– Carlos Leitão, Minister of Finance

Key facts:

  • As noted in Quebec’s March 2017 Economic Plan, the government initiated a modernization project for the RACJ with three phases:
    • Modernize the organization’s institutional culture;
    • Review the regulation and control of alcoholic beverages;
    • Ensure better follow-ups on fundamental issues with the industry.
  • Within the mandate he was given, the MNA for Jean‑Lesage conducted a consultation tour, meeting with 27 representatives in the alcoholic beverage industry.
  • The first step was taken when a single permit came into effect per category for an establishment, on October 1, 2017.