BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1191|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1191
Author: Conway (R)
Amended: 3/27/09 in Assembly
Vote: 21
SENATE GOVERNMENTAL ORG. COMMITTEE : 12-0, 6/23/09
AYES: Wright, Harman, Benoit, Denham, Florez, Negrete
McLeod, Oropeza, Padilla, Price, Wiggins, Wyland, Yee
NO VOTE RECORDED: Calderon
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 77-0, 5/18/09 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Alcoholic beverages: proof of age: passports
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill allows licensees selling alcoholic
beverages to accept U.S. passports and foreign passports as
proof of age.
ANALYSIS : Existing law establishes the Department of
Alcoholic Beverage control (ABC) and grants it exclusive
authority to administer the provisions of the ABC Act in
accordance with laws enacted by the Legislature.
Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for any person under
the age of 21 years to purchase any alcoholic beverage or
consume any alcoholic beverages in any on-sale premises.
Existing law also subjects a holder of a license to sell
alcoholic beverages to criminal prosecution and suspension
CONTINUED
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or revocation of that license if the licensee sells nay
alcoholic beverages to any person under the age of 21
years.
Existing law provides that bona fide evidence of majority
and identity of the person is a document issued by a
federal, state, county, or municipal government, or
subdivision or agency thereof, including, but not limited
to, a motor vehicle operator's license or an identification
card issued to a member of the Armed Forces, that contains
the name, date of birth, description, and picture of the
person. Existing law authorizes the acceptance of a
military identification card as bona fide evidence that a
person is 21 years of age, provided that proof of majority
is further substantiated with other identification, as
specified.
This bill:
1.Authorizes the acceptance of a valid passport, issued by
the U.S. government or a foreign government, as bona fide
evidence that a person is 21 years of age or older.
2.Makes various legislative findings and declarations
relative to the importance of tourism in California.
Comments
The author's office notes that currently ABC does not view
passports as a defensible form of identification for the
purposes of purchasing alcohol. California law requires a
physical description to be on identification being used to
verify age for the purpose of purchasing alcohol. Although
passports have a picture, name, sex and date of birth, they
do not list things such as hair color, eye color, height or
weight. The author's office believes that by not accepting
passports to purchase alcohol, California's tourism
industry is missing out on significant revenues, which
could create additional jobs and assist in restoring the
State's struggling economy.
The author's office states that passports are accepted
around the world as proper forms of identification and used
to travel to and from one country and another.
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Furthermore, the author's office emphasizes that passports
are viewed as secure enough to prevent terrorists from
entering the country, but in California, that same secure
ID cannot be used to purchase a beer at a ballgame or a
glass of chardonnay in the wine country. This bill is
intended to help stimulate California's tourism industry by
allowing foreign and domestic passports to be accepted as a
proper form of identification, thus enabling such visitors
to purchase alcoholic beverages.
Prior/Related Legislation
AB 59 (Jeffries), 2009-10 Session . Provides that, if a
military identification card lacks a physical description,
but does include date of birth and photo, further proof of
majority shall not be required to purchase or consume any
alcoholic beverage, as specified. (In Senate
Appropriations Committee)
AB 764 (Calderon), Chapter 68, Statutes of 2005 .
Authorized the acceptance of a military ID card as bona
fide evidence that a person is 21 years of age, provided
that proof of majority is further substantiated with other
identification, as specified.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 6/24/09)
California Beer and Beverage Distributors
California Peace Officers' Association
California Police Chiefs Association
Distilled Spirits Council of the United States
Family Winemakers of California
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Anderson, Arambula, Beall, Bill
Berryhill, Tom Berryhill, Blakeslee, Block, Blumenfield,
Brownley, Buchanan, Caballero, Charles Calderon, Carter,
Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon,
DeVore, Duvall, Emmerson, Evans, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong,
Fuentes, Fuller, Furutani, Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick,
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Gilmore, Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill,
Huber, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Knight, Krekorian, Lieu,
Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Miller, Monning,
Nava, Nestande, Niello, Nielsen, John A. Perez, V. Manuel
Perez, Portantino, Ruskin, Salas, Silva, Skinner, Smyth,
Solorio, Audra Strickland, Swanson, Torlakson, Torres,
Torrico, Tran, Villines, Yamada, Bass
NO VOTE RECORDED: Eng, Price, Saldana
TSM:cm 6/24/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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