Montana Code Annotated 2021

TITLE 16. ALCOHOL, TOBACCO, AND MARIJUANA

CHAPTER 4. LICENSE ADMINISTRATION

Part 4. Licensing Criteria

Fingerprints Required Of Applicants -- Exceptions

16-4-414. Fingerprints required of applicants -- exceptions. (1) Except as provided in subsections (2) and (3), an applicant for a license under this code, any person employed by the applicant as a manager, and, if the applicant is a privately held corporation, each person holding 15% or more of the outstanding stock and each officer shall submit their fingerprints with the application to facilitate a fingerprint and background check by the department of justice and the federal bureau of investigation. If the applicant is a publicly traded corporation, any person employed by the applicant as a location manager and an officer shall submit their fingerprints with the application to facilitate a fingerprint and background check by the department of justice and the federal bureau of investigation. The results of the investigation must be used by the department in determining the applicant's eligibility for a license.

(2) (a) When the applicant is seeking a license for off-premises consumption, the following persons are subject to the fingerprint and background check described in subsection (1):

(i) the applicant;

(ii) a person designated by the applicant as responsible for operating the licensed establishment on behalf of the licensee; or

(iii) if the applicant is a corporation, each officer responsible for operating the licensed establishment.

(b) Additional fingerprint and background checks may be required at renewal only for new persons described in subsection (2)(a).

(c) A change in the form of a licensee's business entity that does not result in any person having a new ownership interest in the business is not grounds for the department to require a fingerprint or background check.

(3) When the applicant is seeking a license for off-premises consumption, a person employed by the applicant as a manager is not subject to the fingerprint and background check described in subsection (1).

(4) Approved applicants may use a single background check and set of fingerprints for multiple license applications within 3 years. Applicants must attest that no criminal charges have been filed since the background check was last completed.

History: En. Sec. 1, Ch. 110, L. 2003; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 495, L. 2005; amd. Sec. 7, Ch. 568, L. 2021.