New Years Day deadline for liquor license deadbeats

<p>2004 could be a dry year for hundreds of Georgia bars, restaurants and package stores that owe back taxes.</p><p>At midnight Wednesday, about 360 businesses will be without valid licenses to serve alcohol. They cannot renew the liquor licenses until they pay their back taxes, Revenue Commissioner Bart Graham said Tuesday.</p><p>They are stacking up like cordwood, Graham said of a crowd that filled the Revenue Department lobby Tuesday to pay up so they could get their 2004 liquor licenses and legally fill the glasses of New Years revelers.</p><p>Graham and his staff broke the news in November to about 1,500 establishments that owed the state a combined $11 million. They included convenience stores and a handful of private country clubs, he said.</p><p>The department has since collected about $4 million, and all but 360 of the offenders have paid up, set up a payment plan or proved they were put on the list in error, Graham said.</p><p>Most of the businesses have not paid sales and use taxes or have failed to turn over taxes withheld from their employees, Graham said. He would not name those on the list.</p><p>Grahams agency will have some of its 50 enforcement officers spot-check to be sure businesses are not serving alcohol without a valid license. The department also is notifying beer and alcohol distributors theyll break the law if they sell to any offenders, the commissioner said.</p><p>Graham, who took charge of the department in June, said most of the businesses had outstanding tax bills before 2003 but were still able to renew their liquor licenses.</p><p>The old philosophy that was pushed on our professionals was: We dont want to put anybody out of business, Graham said.</p><p>My philosophy is, I dont want to keep anybody in business if its going to be a violation of the laws were here to enforce or if its at the expense of the 90 to 95 percent of the taxpayers who are doing the right thing.</p>

http://accesswdun.com/article/2003/12/180438