ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey regulators will hold a hearing next month on whether two golf courses are owned by the former president Donald Trump should have their liquor licenses renewed following his felony convictions in New York in May.
Permits for Trump golf courses in Colts Neck and Bedminster expire Sunday. The state Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control said Friday it is not renewing the permits, but is issuing temporary 90-day permits so they can continue to serve alcohol until a hearing on the permits is held July 19 in Trenton.
The hearing is scheduled after Trump’s conviction on July 11.
“At such a hearing, the applicant bears the burden of proof to demonstrate by a preponderance of the evidence that he or she remains qualified to maintain licensure, which includes a review of any potential beneficiaries of the licenses,” the Attorney General’s Office said in a statement.
The permit for a third Trump golf course, in Pine Hill, has been extended by the city, the state said.
The question is whether Trump’s conviction for 34 felonies of falsifying company records to conceal hush money payments to a porn star violates New Jersey’s ban on anyone with a liquor license who has been convicted of a crime related to ‘moral depravity’.
When the state announced earlier this month that it should investigate whether to take action against the permits, the former president’s company, The Trump Organization, said the investigation does not apply to him because the permits were issued on name of legal entities of which he is not a director or director.
But the attorney general’s office said that “an investigation by ABC indicates that Mr. Trump has a direct economic interest in the three liquor licenses through receipt of income and profits from them, as the sole beneficiary of the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust .”
A representative for the Trump Organization did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday. But earlier this month, a company spokeswoman said: “These are some of the most iconic properties in the world, and reports like these do nothing but harm the thousands of hardworking Americans who make their livelihoods from these spectacular assets.”
When Trump was sworn in as the 45th president in January 2017, he turned over management of The Trump Organization to his eldest sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, according to a statement on the company’s website.
