Practical Guide Table of Contents

Back to RHC
For a printable version of the Practical Guide, please click here
Introduction
	Hospitality is central to the fabric of community life
	What is the purpose of this guide?
Developed by the RHC
	What is the Responsible Hospitality Council?
	This guide provides a road map
	What is Hospitality?
	Hospitality is the service of food and beverages
	Three primary areas of responsibilities
Alcohol
	The service of alcohol is part of many hospitality occasions
	The community stakeholders
Licensing: State Agencies
	Why do I need a license to serve alcohol beverages?
	What is the licensing system in Nebraska?
	What type of license do I need to serve alcohol beverages?
	Why are there different types of licenses?
	What types of retail licenses are there?
	Where do I get a license? How long does it take?
	How much does it cost?
	Should I get professional help? If so what kind?
	What do I do first?
	What other agencies do I need to contact?
	Why might the state deny my application?
	If the State Liquor Control Commission denies my application, what can I do?
	After my application is approved, when can I open?
	Once approved, do I need to renew my liquor license? How often?
Local Government
	What is the role of local government?
	What role does the public have in deciding about my license?
	What are the reasons local government would deny my right to open a business?
	If the local government denies my application, what can I do?
	After local approval, what next?
General Responsibilities
	What are my primary responsibilities?
	Am I required to post any signs or notices before opening?
	Where can I buy alcohol to sell?
	What is the role of the wholesaler?
	Can the wholesaler provide me with signs, advertising, free product?
	What age must my employees be to serve alcohol?
	Is it necessary for my managers or service staff to be trained?
	Is it necessary for my manager to be licensed?
	What days and hours can I sell alcohol? What hours can I be open?
	Can I have a private party with friends or employees after closing?
	If a customer doesn’t finish a drink, can they take it off premises?
	Can I allow a guest to try a bottle of beer on premises before buying a full case?
	What types of on-premise promotions can I have?
	What types of off-premise promotions can I have?
	Do I need to register or record the purchase of large quantities or kegs?
Additional Responsibilities
	How old does a person have to be to purchase tobacco?
	If my employee is cited for selling tobacco to a minor, what happens to my business?
	What is gambling?
	What types of gambling are legal?
	What games can I allow on my licensed premise? What games are illegal?
Age Identification
	What age must a person be to come into my establishment?
	Do I need to "card" someone before serving them alcohol?
	What must my employees now to determine if someone is underage?
	What are the four most important things employees should know to verify age?
	What if someone is with their parent?
	What can I do if an adult buys for a minor?
	What is the age identification log book?
Intoxication
	Why do people drink?
	Is there a limit on the size of a drink I can sell?
	Is there a limit on the number of drinks I can sell?
	How do I know if someone is intoxicated?
	How many drinks can a person have and still be below the legal limit of 0.10% BAC?
	What if the person isn’t driving?
	Is this asking too much of my service staff?
	What rights do I have in refusing service to someone? Can they sue me if I am wrong?
	Can I and my employees consume alcohol while working?
	Why must we refuse service to an intoxicated person if they won’t be consuming alcohol on my off-premise business?
Penalties
	What types of penalties are there is we do not comply with the regulations?
	What happens to the minor who attempts to purchase? What are my rights to prosecute?
	What happens to the intoxicated person on my premise after I refuse to serve them?
	What are the penalties for drinking and driving?
	What abut customers who are alcoholic? Do I have any responsibilities?
	If one of my employees is cited by the police, what happens to my business?
	What happens to the employee?
	Am I responsible for the employee’s actions?
	What are the possible penalties against us?
	Administrative hearings: How are regulations enforced?
	What responsibilities does local police have?
	What are the most common violations against licensees?
	When am I notified of the violation?
	How long will it take before we are called before the licensing board?
	Should I bring an attorney? My employees?
	What are the hearing procedures? Should I bring written documents?
	Do I have the right to defend myself?
	After the hearing, how long does it take to get a decision?
	If we are fined, how long do I have to pay the fine?
	If our license is suspended, when do we have to close? Can we choose the dates?
	Why might our license be revoked?
	Can we appeal the decision?
Local Control
	After we receive our license, what role does the local government play?
	What is the Internal Liquor Committee?
	Can the local government impose penalties against us?
	What can we do to avoid problems?
Facilities: Fire Safety
	What building permits do I need before applying for an alcohol license?
	What are the important issues for fire safety?
	How can I work to ensure customer safety and security?
Food Service
	What are our responsibilities if we want to serve food?
	What permits do we need? Where do we get them?
	How long does it take to get a permit? How much does it cost?
	What is a food handlers permit? Why is it necessary?
	What training is required of my staff who prepare food? Serve food?
	Where can I get training?
	What do I need to be concerned about when serving food?
	What happens if a customer gets sick because of food served at my establishment?
	What should I do to prevent others from getting sick?
	When does the health department conduct inspections?
	What are the most common violations of health standards?
	If we are cited by the health department, what penalties do we face?
Education and Training
	Where can I get more information about managing my business?
	Should I join a trade association? What one? What are the benefits?
	Can I get responsible beverage service training for my staff?
Policies
	What are policies?
	How are policies created?
	Essential elements of an effective policy
Suggested Policies
	Promote group interaction
	Promote food
	Create safe environments
	Make abstainers comfortable
	Don’t make drinking the focus
	Encourage responsible drinking
	Host responsibility
	Drinking is not a rite of passage