§ 18B-1115. Commercial transportation. - North Carolina Statutes

§ 18B‑1115.  Commercialtransportation.

(a)        Permit Required. –Unless a person holds a permit which otherwise allows him to transport morethan 80 liters of malt beverages other than draft malt beverages in kegs, 50liters of unfortified wine, or eight liters of fortified wine or spirituousliquor, or is a retailer authorized to transport alcoholic beverages under G.S.18B‑405, each person transporting alcoholic beverages in excess of thosequantities shall have the permit described in this section.

(b)        When TransportationLegal. – No person may obtain a permit under this section to transportspirituous liquor unless the transportation is for delivery to a federalreservation over which North Carolina has ceded jurisdiction to the UnitedStates, for delivery to an ABC store, or for transport through this State toanother state.

(c)        Common Carriers. –Railroad companies and other common carriers having regularly establishedschedules of service in this State may transport alcoholic beverages into, outof, and between points in this State without a permit. Those companies shallkeep accurate records of the character, volume and number of containerstransported and shall allow the Commission and alcohol law‑enforcementagents to inspect those records at any time. The Commission may require commoncarriers to make reports of shipments.

(d)        Motor VehicleCarriers. – Alcoholic beverages may be transported over the public highways ofthis State by motor vehicle carriers under the following conditions:

(1)        The carrier shallnotify the Commission of the character of the alcoholic beverages it willtransport and of its authorization from the appropriate regulatory authority.

(2)        The carrier shallobtain, at no charge, a fleet permit from the Commission authorizing the transportation.

(3)        The driver or personin charge of each vehicle transporting alcoholic beverages shall possess a copyof the carrier's fleet permit certified by the carrier to be an exact copy ofthe original.

(4)        The driver or personin charge of each vehicle transporting alcoholic beverages shall possess a billof lading, invoice or other memorandum of shipment showing the name and addressof the person from whom the alcoholic beverages were received, the characterand contents of the shipment, the quantity and volume of the shipment, and thename and address of the person to whom the alcoholic beverages are beingshipped.

(5)        The driver or personin charge of each vehicle transporting the alcoholic beverages shall displayall documents required by this section upon request of any law‑enforcementofficer. Failure to produce these documents or failure of the documents todisclose clearly and accurately the information required by this section shallbe prima facie evidence of a violation of this section.

(6)        Each carrier shallkeep accurate records of character, volume and number of containers transportedand shall allow the Commission and alcohol law‑enforcement agents toinspect those records at any time. The Commission may require carriers to makereports of shipments.

(e)        Transportation ofSpirituous Liquor. – In addition to the requirements of subsection (d), motorvehicle carriers engaged in transporting spirituous liquor shall:

(1)        Deposit with theCommission a surety bond for one thousand dollars ($1,000) conditioned that thecarrier will not unlawfully transport spirituous liquor into or through thisState. The bond, which shall be approved by the Commission, shall be payable tothe State of North Carolina. If the bonded carrier is convicted of a violationcovered by the bond, the proceeds of the forfeited bond shall be paid to theschool fund of the county in which the liquor was seized.

(2)        Include in its billof lading, invoice or other memorandum of shipment the North Carolina codenumbers of the spirituous liquor being transported.

(3)        Include in its billof lading, invoice or other memorandum of shipment the route which the vehiclewill follow, and the vehicle shall not vary substantially from that statedroute.

(f)         Malt Beverages andWine Transported by Boats. – The owner or operator of any boat may transportmalt beverages, unfortified wine and fortified wine over the waters of thisState if he satisfies all requirements of subsection (d).

(g)        State WarehouseCarrier. – The Commission may exempt a carrier for the State or a local boardwarehouse from any of the requirements of this section provided that itdetermines that the requirements of this section are otherwise satisfied. (1923, c. 1, s. 15; C.S., s.3411(o); 1939, c. 158, s. 503; 1971, c. 872, s. 1; 1975, c. 411, s. 7; 1977, c.70, s. 20; c. 176, s. 7; 1979, c. 286, s. 5; 1981, c. 412, s. 2; c. 747, s. 63;1987, c. 136, s. 9; 1989, c. 553, s. 4; 1993, c. 508, s. 7; 2005‑335, s.1.)