Publication and Newspaper Notice Requirements for a TABC Application

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Applicants for most original Texas alcohol permits and for beer licenses must publish notice of the application in two consecutive issues of a newspaper of general circulation, published in the city or town where the business will be, at their own expense and in 10-point boldface type. Original applicants for on-premise and private club permits must also mail notice to nearby residences and neighborhood associations unless the application includes a Food and Beverage Certificate, and some must notify nearby schools or tenants. Renewal applicants do not publish.

Who must publish

Section 11.39 of the Alcoholic Beverage Code requires publication for original applications for these permits:

  • Distiller’s and Rectifier’s Permit (D)
  • Mixed Beverage Permit (MB)
  • Private Club Registration Permit (N)
  • Winery Permit (G)
  • Wholesaler’s Permit (W) and General Class B Wholesaler’s Permit (X)
  • Package Store Permit (P)

Section 61.38 requires the same for every original applicant for a license to brew, distribute, or sell beer at retail, and allows that notice by electronic or non-electronic publication. Nonprofit temporary event permits are excluded from the permit rule, and neither section applies to renewals.

The Wine and Malt Beverage Retailer’s Permit (BG) does not appear in the Section 11.39 list. TABC’s Required Certifications form, however, includes the publisher’s affidavit for all applicants except three nonresident and out-of-state permit types, so a BG applicant should confirm with its local TABC office whether TABC will expect proof of publication.

Which newspaper

The statute sets an order of choice:

  1. a newspaper of general circulation published in the city or town where the place of business is located;
  2. if none is published there, a newspaper of general circulation published in the county; and
  3. if none is published in the county, a qualified newspaper published in the closest neighboring county and circulated in the applicant’s county.

A paper that circulates in the city but is published elsewhere does not satisfy the first choice while a paper published in the city exists.

What the notice says

The notice runs in 10-point boldface type and must include:

  • the type of permit or license applied for;
  • the exact location of the place of business;
  • the name of each owner and, for a business using an assumed name, the trade name with the names of all owners; and
  • for a corporation, the names and titles of all officers.

An illustrative layout, not an official TABC form, shows how the elements fit together:

NOTICE OF APPLICATION. [Name of each owner] has applied to the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission for a [type of permit or license], to operate as [trade name, if an assumed name is used], at [exact street address, city, and county]. Officers of [corporation name]: [name and title of each officer].

Each bracketed item is one of the statutory elements, and a notice missing any of them is incomplete; in print, the whole notice runs in 10-point boldface type.

The publisher, or a designee, completes the publisher’s affidavit on the last page of the Required Certifications form, with the newspaper’s name, the publication dates, and a printed copy of the notice attached.

Mailed notice to neighbors

Section 11.393 adds a separate notice for an original application for a private club registration permit or a permit to sell alcohol for on-premises consumption:

  • Who receives it: each residential address and established neighborhood association within 300 feet of any property line of the premises.
  • When: mailed no earlier than the 14th day and no later than the 7th day before the application is filed.
  • How: by mail at the applicant’s expense, on TABC’s form, in English and another language where a substantial number of nearby residents speak another language as their familiar one.
  • Content: the permit and business type, the exact location, the owners or trade name, corporate officers, and how to protest.
  • Proof: a list of every address notified goes in with the application.

The mailed notice does not apply to an application that includes a Food and Beverage Certificate.

Other notices that may apply

  • Schools. An applicant whose public entrance is within 1,000 feet of a public or private school gives written notice to the school before filing.
  • Large cities. In a municipality of 1.5 million or more, an applicant for a mixed beverage or wine and malt beverage retailer’s permit whose property line is within 300 feet of a residence, church, school, hospital, day-care, or social service facility, and whose alcohol sales are or will be 75 percent or more of gross revenue, notifies affected tenants and property owners within five days after filing (Section 11.52).
  • The 60-day sign. A location not recently licensed for on-premises consumption also needs an outdoor sign posted before the permit issues, a separate requirement from publication.

Keeping the notices on schedule

Book the newspaper so both issues run before the certifications page goes in, schedule the residential mailing inside its 14-to-7-day window, and keep the affidavit, the tear sheets, and the mailing list together with the application file.

This article is general information about Texas alcoholic beverage law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Statutes and TABC rules change; confirm current requirements with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission, the relevant city or county, or a licensed Texas attorney before acting.

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