Penalties for violating Beverage Law; local ordinances; prohibiting regulation of certain activities or business transactions; requiring nondiscriminatory treatment; providing exceptions.

(1) Any person willfully and knowingly making any false entries in any records required under the Beverage Law or willfully violating any of the provisions of the Beverage Law, concerning the excise tax herein provided for shall be guilty of a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084. It is unlawful for any person to violate any provision of the Beverage Law, and any person who violates any provision of the Beverage Law for which no penalty has been provided shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083; provided, that any person who shall have been convicted of a violation of any provision of the Beverage Law and shall thereafter be convicted of a further violation of the Beverage Law, shall, upon conviction of said further offense, be guilty of a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.

(2)(a) Nothing contained in the Beverage Law may be construed to affect or impair the power or right of any county or incorporated municipality of the state to enact ordinances regulating the hours of business and location of place of business, and prescribing sanitary regulations therefor, of any licensee under the Beverage Law within the county or corporate limits of such municipality. However, except for premises licensed on or before July 1, 1999, and except for locations licensed as restaurants, which derive at least 51 percent of their gross revenues from the sale of food and nonalcoholic beverages, pursuant to chapter 509, a location for on-premises consumption of alcoholic beverages may not be located within 500 feet of the real property that comprises a public or private elementary school, middle school, or secondary school unless the county or municipality approves the location as promoting the public health, safety, and general welfare of the community under proceedings as provided in s. 125.66(5), for counties, and s. 166.041(3)(c), for municipalities. This restriction may not, however, be construed to prohibit the issuance of temporary permits to certain nonprofit organizations as provided for in s. 561.422. The division may not issue a change in the series of a license or approve a change of a licensee’s location unless the licensee provides documentation of proper zoning from the appropriate county or municipal zoning authorities.

(b) Nothing in the Beverage Law shall be construed to affect or impair the power or right of any county or incorporated municipality of the state to enact ordinances regulating the type of entertainment and conduct permitted in any establishment licensed under the Beverage Law to sell alcoholic beverages for consumption on the premises, or any bottle club licensed under s. 561.14, which is located within such county or municipality.

(c) A county or municipality may not enact any ordinance that regulates or prohibits those activities or business transactions of a licensee regulated by the Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco under the Beverage Law. Except as otherwise provided in the Beverage Law, a local government, when enacting ordinances designed to promote and protect the general health, safety, and welfare of the public, shall treat a licensee in a nondiscriminatory manner and in a manner that is consistent with the manner of treatment of any other lawful business transacted in this state. Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect or impair the enactment or enforcement by a county or municipality of any zoning, land development or comprehensive plan regulation or other ordinance authorized under ss. 1, 2, and 5, Art. VIII of the State Constitution.