As discussed in Finding 1, the paradox of scarcity and surplus produces a licensing environment where prospective business owners can readily obtain a license in some municipalities while they face barriers that require the Legislature’s approval or substantial capital in others. This Finding examines the pathways available when licenses in a particular quota municipality are insufficient to meet demand.
Prospective licensees have two options for pursuing licenses beyond quota, discussed in detail in this Finding:
- requesting that the municipality file a home rule petition to obtain additional licenses via special legislation (ranging from a single, location-specific license for a particular applicant to a batch of licenses to support larger economic development projects) or
- purchasing a license from an existing holder on the private secondary market.
Stakeholders described the home rule petition pathway as lengthy, opaque, and relationship-dependent, and the secondary market pathway as often carrying a steep markup—assuming a license is even for sale since the state keeps no central, public list.
When neither pathway works, prospective licensees may relocate to another municipality or state, taking their capital elsewhere, or abandon their plans altogether. Interviewees and survey respondents confirmed these outcomes in practice. Tyngsborough, a town of 12,475 just south of the New Hampshire border, had no on-premises licenses available in 2017 and again in 2023. According to a Tyngsborough municipal official, “Businesses usually call the town before they buy land or sign anything, and if the town says no license is available, those businesses simply move on to Lowell or Nashua.”131 A municipal employee from the City of Lawrence explained, “I think the process is kind of cumbersome and it’s a lot of work. Often operators just don’t do it.”132
| Date published: | October 13, 2026 |
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