How to ask the PLCB for an advisory opinion

What an advisory opinion is

The PLCB’s Office of Chief Counsel answers written questions from licensees about how the Liquor Code and the Board’s regulations apply to a specific situation. The answer comes back as a written advisory opinion.¹

Two things make it worth asking:

• It’s binding on the Pennsylvania State Police Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement (BLCE), the agency that inspects licensed premises and issues citations.¹
• It’s on paper. If an officer asks about the setup, you can show them the letter.

What it doesn’t do

• It covers only the facts you describe. Change the setup, the hours or the product, and the opinion may no longer apply.¹
• The PLCB doesn’t issue opinions while BLCE is investigating you or when a citation is pending.¹ Ask before you launch, not after.
• It isn’t a license or a permit. If what you want to do needs one, such as the ready-to-drink cocktail permit for to-go sales, you still apply for it separately.²

Who can ask, and how to send it

Licensees or their representatives can ask, which includes your attorney.¹ Put the request in writing and send it to the Office of Chief Counsel by email, fax or mail:

Email	ra-lblegal@pa.gov
Fax	(717) 787-8820
Mail	Office of Chief Counsel, Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, 401 Northwest Office Building, Harrisburg, PA 17124-0001

The PLCB doesn’t publish a turnaround time, so send it well before any launch date you’ve promised anyone.

What to put in the request

The opinion can only be as specific as the question. A good request reads like a description an inspector could check against the room.

1. Your license. The licensee name, license number and license type (R, H, E, C and so on).
2. The premises. The address, and where on the premises the new setup will go. A floor plan sketch helps.
3. The setup, step by step. What the guest does, what staff do, and what any equipment does. For a machine, that means how ID is checked, what happens when a scan fails, how many drinks one ID can buy, and how staff stop sales.
4. Who supervises. Which employees can see it from where they work, and whether they’re RAMP-certified.
5. Hours. When sales start and stop, and how that’s enforced.
6. The product. What’s sold, in what containers, and who you buy it from.
7. Your question. One clear question per issue. “Does the arrangement described above comply with the Liquor Code and the Board’s regulations?” works as a closing line.

Describe facts, not conclusions. “Staff at the service bar, 12 feet away, can see the machine and pause it from a tablet” gives the PLCB something to rule on. “The machine is fully supervised” doesn’t.

Keep it on file

Keep the opinion with your license documents at the premises, and make sure your managers know where it is. If you change the setup later, check whether the change still fits the facts you described. If it doesn’t, ask again.

How DrinkDock handles it

Before every install, we draft the request with you, describing the exact setup at your venue, and submit it on your behalf. We share the PLCB’s response with you, and if the answer is no, we don’t install. More on the compliance page.