14B NCAC 15C .0711      ACCEPTED TRADE PRACTICES; THINGS OF VALUE; RETAIL PERMITTEES

(a)  Items That Must Be Sold. Malt beverage, wine, and spirituous liquor industry members shall not give, lend, or rent to a retail permittee, but may sell to the retail permittee at the price paid by the first industry member who acquires the following things of value:

(1)           novelties, coolers, umbrellas, ice chests, beach towels, towels, and sports equipment, if the item has not been customized for a retail permittee with the retail permittee's name or logo;

(2)           glassware and cups, if the item has not been customized for a retail permittee with the retail permittee's name or logo;

(3)           carbon dioxide;

(4)           ice;

(5)           beer tapping accessories, faucets, rods, vents, taps, hoses, washers, couplings, gas gauges, vent tongues, shanks, and check valves; and

(6)           menus that exceed the number of food items allowed by 14B NCAC 15B .1006(a)(3).

(b)  Items That May Be Provided at No Charge. Industry members may give, provide, loan, rent, or sell the following things of value to a retail permittee:

(1)           samples of malt beverage, wine, and spirituous liquor products in the following quantities:

(A)          no more than three gallons of any brand of malt beverages;

(B)          no more than three liters of any brand of wine; and

(C)          no more than 50 milliliters of any brand of spirituous liquor.

Industry members may only give samples to a retail permittee who has not previously purchased those brands from the industry member within the previous calendar year.

(2)           recipes, booklets, and brochures for cooking with malt beverages, wine, or spirituous liquors pursuant to 14B NCAC 15B .1006(a)(3);

(3)           malt beverage, wine, and mixed beverage lists pursuant to 14B NCAC 15B .1006(a)(3);

(4)           combination packaging pursuant to 27 CFR 6.93;

(5)           consumer specialty items such as bottle or can openers, cork screws, ash trays, shopping bags, individual can coolers, hats, caps, visors, t-shirts (without collars or buttons), or key chains. Such items may be given to retail permittees for distribution to consumers, or may be provided by industry member personnel directly to consumers at the retail permittee's place of business during visits that are not announced or advertised to consumers. Consumer specialty items shall not be customized for a retail permittee with the retail permittee's name or logo; and

(6)           product displays, to include wine racks, bins, barrels, casks and shelving from which malt beverage, wine or spirituous liquor are displayed and sold, so long as:

(A)          each display bears advertising matter; and

(B)          the dollar limitations per brand do not exceed those established in G.S. 18B-105.

(7)           point of sale advertising materials which have value only as advertising, so long as the pieces have not been customized for any individual retail permittee.

(8)           retail permittee advertising specialty items as described in 14B NCAC 15B .1006(a)(4), so long as the items have not been customized for an individual retail permittee, and so long as the dollar limitations per brand do not exceed those established in G.S. 18B-105.

(c)  Point-Of-Sale Advertising Materials. Notwithstanding having a secondary value, the following items are considered to be point-of-sale materials and an industry member is not required to submit to legal@abc.nc.gov for approval prior to use, so long as the items bear advertising matter:

(1)           clocks;

(2)           lamps;

(3)           lighted displays;

(4)           blackboards;

(5)           bulletin boards;

(6)           dart board backgrounds;

(7)           menu and price boards;

(8)           tap standards;

(9)           calendars;

(10)         mirrors; and

(11)         prizes offered in a consumer sweepstakes or contest pursuant to 14B NCAC 15C .0714(b). Industry members shall place a sticker on prizes to show the prize is the property of the industry member. The industry member shall pick up the prize at the conclusion of the sweepstakes or contest.

(d)  The provisions of 27 CFR 6.93 referenced in this Rule are incorporated by reference including subsequent amendments and editions that may be accessed for free at https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-27/section-6.93.

(e)  Nothing in this Rule applies to ABC boards.

History Note:        Authority G.S. 18B-100; 18B-105; 18B-207;

Eff. July 1, 1992;

Amended Eff. April 1, 2011;

Transferred and Recodified from 04 NCAC 02T .0713 Eff. August 1, 2015;

Pursuant to G.S. 150B-21.3A, rule is necessary without substantive public interest Eff. August 19, 2017;

Readopted Eff. May 1, 2026.