Details about the new training requirement were outlined Tuesday at The Wise Old Dog in West Hartford, where a training video had been filmed.

By Karla Ciaglo, CTNewsJunkie.com

Those looking to sell alcohol in Connecticut have a new requirement, under rules that went into effect Jan. 1. Starting on that date, the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection began requiring all new on-premises and off-premises liquor permit applicants to complete a state-developed Liquor Law Education Program, a move officials say is intended to reduce impaired driving, prevent illegal alcohol sales, and clarify the legal responsibilities of liquor permit holders.

The requirement applies to both permittees – the individuals legally responsible for the permit – and owners of backer entities tied to an application. The training is free and available statewide but mandatory only for new applicants. Businesses or individuals holding active final or provisional permits as of Jan. 1, 2026, are exempt from the requirement for renewal, though existing permit holders may complete the course voluntarily.

“It can feel like enforcement to overcome, when it’s really much more important than that,” said Jacob Studenroth, owner of Wise Old Dog Liquor Store in West Hartford, where officials filmed the training video. “We have to treat things as seriously as they are.”

The initiative is administered by the Department of Consumer Protection, the state’s primary regulator of liquor establishments, and funded through the Department of Transportation, with additional funding and curriculum support from the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services.

The effort was overseen by former liquor control director Caitlin Anderson and current director Rich Mindich and reflects a yearslong, cross-agency focus on alcohol service practices, public health, and roadway safety, officials said.

Studenroth, who has a background in restaurant service, said the program fills a gap for small businesses that have long relied on paid third-party training, such as TIPS, or informal education. With some programs costing about $50 per employee, he said making the training free removes a significant barrier.

Bryan Cafferelli, commissioner of consumer protection, said the course reflects the legal weight of holding a liquor permit and is intended to give permittees a foundational understanding of their responsibilities.

“This is a great example of how government works best when it works together,” Cafferelli said.

In 2024, DCP conducted 255 underage alcohol compliance checks statewide and found that 80 businesses – about 31% – sold alcohol to a minor during enforcement stings.

Transportation Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto said the training targets one of the last upstream decision points before alcohol-related harm occurs. According to Eucalitto, roughly 40% of Connecticut traffic fatalities involve impaired drivers each year, compared with a national average of about 30%.

While Connecticut traffic fatalities fell 12% in 2025, according to preliminary CTDOT data, officials said persistent risks – including impaired driving, speeding, and rising pedestrian and bicycle deaths – continue to drive serious and fatal crashes.

Eucalitto said impaired driving remains a major concern despite progress in road safety, citing the installation of roughly 200 wrong-way detection systems on Connecticut highways as one of several countermeasures.

“We know that these deaths are preventable, and someone could have stopped it at some point in the course of that day and night,” he said.

As of October 2025, the system had recorded more than 700 activations statewide, with drivers self-correcting about 82% of the time. From 2019 to 2023, state data show 80% of wrong-way crashes resulted in the driver’s death, losses that intensified calls for stronger impaired-driving prevention after a 2023 wrong-way crash killed state Rep. Quentin Williams.

Federal crash data shows Hartford ranked fifth nationwide for fatal drunk-driving rates from 2018 to 2022, with Waterbury 13th and New Haven 60th.

Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services Deputy Commissioner Colleen Harrington said the agency’s work is grounded in prevention, recovery and well-being, and that alcohol safety is a critical part of that mission.

While youth alcohol use has declined, Harrington said alcohol remains a significant public health concern, with alcohol-related tragedies carrying far-reaching consequences for families and communities.

“Every accident represents a person, but it has concentric circles,” she said. “All of us have a responsibility.”

The video-based training covers preventing sales to minors, recognizing and avoiding overservice, restrictions on alcohol promotions, and the mechanics of liquor permitting, including new applications, ownership or control changes, and substitute permittee requests. Completion of the training generates a certificate that permit applicants must upload with their application packet.

This article first appeared on CTNewsJunkie.com. Republished with permission.

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