BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                       



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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                  AB 1643|
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                                    CONSENT


          Bill No:  AB 1643
          Author:   Smyth (R)
          Amended:  5/12/10 in Senate
          Vote:     27 - Urgency

           
           SENATE GOVERNMENTAL ORG. COMMITTEE :  6-0, 6/9/10
          AYES:  Wright, Negrete McLeod, Padilla, Price, Wyland, Yee
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Harman, Calderon, Denham, Florez,  
            Oropeza

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  69-0, 4/26/10 - See last page for vote


           SUBJECT  :    Alcohol beverages:  places of consumption

           SOURCE  :     Author


           DIGEST  :    This bill permits alcoholic beverages to be  
          acquired, possessed, or used during events held at a  
          community college-owned facility used to school K-12  
          students, if the event is held at a time when students in  
          any grades from K-12 are not present at the facility,  
          defines "events" to include fundraisers held to benefit a  
          nonprofit that has obtained an appropriate Alcoholic  
          Beverage Control license for the event, and contains a  
          chaptering out provision incorporating the provisions of  
          this bill and AB 1860 (Tom Berryhill).

           ANALYSIS  :    The enactment of the 21st Amendment to the  
          U.S. Constitution in 1933 repealed the 18th Amendment and  
          ended the era of Prohibition.  Accordingly, states were  
                                                           CONTINUED





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          granted the authority to establish alcoholic beverage laws  
          and administrative structures to regulate the sale and  
          distribution of alcoholic beverages.  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.  The ABC Act generally prohibits, with  
          specified exceptions, the possession, consumption and sale  
          of alcoholic beverages in any public school (K-14) or any  
          grounds thereof.  

          Over the years, numerous legislative exceptions have been  
          granted to school districts to allow for the possession and  
          use of alcoholic beverages on community college school  
          grounds.  (See policy committee analysis for those bills.)

           Background
           
          According to the author's office, the College of the  
          Canyons, located in the Santa Clarita Valley, has completed  
          construction of a new University Center facility to serve a  
          variety of purposes for the campus.  A portion of the first  
          floor of the University Center facility will house the  
          Academy of the Canyons (11th and 12th grades) and Early  
          College High School (9th through 12th grades).  The  
          community college plans to use the top floor of the  
          facility as a conference and meeting center.  Part of that  
          plan includes alcohol service in support of designated  
          events.  

          The author's office notes that current law prohibits  
          alcohol service in any facility that is also occupied by  
          K-12 students.  Given that the conference center (3rd  
          floor) will be used after school hours and will be located  
          on a different floor than the two schools, with no direct  
          access by high school students, this measure seeks to  
          revise the law to allow alcohol service in the University  
          Center facility when high school students are not present.   
          The author's office emphasizes that without such a change,  
          College of the Canyons will be unable to utilize this new  
          facility to its maximum potential.  Furthermore, the  
          author's office points out that events scheduled to be held  
          in the new facility will provide valuable contributions to  
          both the school and the surrounding community, as they  







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          often raise money for a variety of community activities.

          Related and Prior Legislation  

          AB 1860 (Tom Berryhill) 2009-10 Session, would allow any  
          county office of education or school district in the state  
          that owns and operates an overnight  retreat facility to  
          have an event at the overnight retreat facility where  
          alcoholic beverages can be possessed, consumed or sold,  
          provided the event is held during weekends or at times when  
          pupils are not on the grounds.  Under current law only  
          Marin and Stanislaus have this authority.  (Pending in  
          Senate Governmental Organization Committee)

          AB 1748 (Hill) 2009-10 Session, would expand an existing  
          exception to the general prohibition against the  
          consumption of alcoholic beverages on publicly owned school  
          property (K-14) applicable to special events held at a  
          community college in a county of the first class (Los  
          Angeles) and in a county of the fourth class (Alameda) to  
          also include a community college located in a county of the  
          10th class (San Mateo).  (Pending on the Senate Floor)

          AB 888 (Price) 2009-10 Session, would have added a new  
          provision to the ABC Act prohibiting an individual from  
          possessing or consuming an open alcoholic beverage  
          container on city and county streets, alleys, and sidewalks  
          within 600 feet of a public or private school, with  
          specified exceptions.  This bill was vetoed by Governor on  
          the basis that existing law already allows local government  
          the ability to enact ordinances to restrict or prohibit the  
          possession or consumption of alcohol in public areas.

          AB 1448 (Tom Berryhill) Chapter 399, Statutes of 2009,  
          authorized the possession, consumption, or sale of  
          alcoholic beverages for an event during the weekend or at  
          other times when pupils are not on the grounds of an  
          overnight retreat facility owned and operated by the County  
          Office of Education in Stanislaus County.  

          AB 172 (Smyth) Chapter 398, Statutes of 2009, similar to  
          this bill.  (AB 1448, Tom Berryhill, Chapter 399, Statutes  
          of 2009 inadvertently chaptered out AB 172.)








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           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  No   Fiscal Com.:  No    
          Local:  No

           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  6/14/10)

          College of the Canyons


           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  
          AYES:  Adams, Ammiano, Anderson, Beall, Bill Berryhill, Tom  
            Berryhill, Blakeslee, Block, Blumenfield, Bradford,  
            Brownley, Buchanan, Caballero, Charles Calderon, Chesbro,  
            Conway, Cook, Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon, DeVore,  
            Emmerson, Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes,  
            Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick, Gilmore, Hagman, Hall, Harkey,  
            Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill, Huber, Huffman, Jeffries,  
            Jones, Knight, Lieu, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma,  
            Mendoza, Miller, Monning, Nava, Nestande, Niello,  
            Nielsen, Norby, Portantino, Ruskin, Silva, Skinner,  
            Smyth, Solorio, Audra Strickland, Swanson, Torlakson,  
            Torres, Torrico, Tran, Villines
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Arambula, Bass, Carter, Fuller,  
            Furutani, V. Manuel Perez, Salas, Saldana, Yamada, John  
            A. Perez 


          DLW:nl  6/14/10   Senate Floor Analyses 

                         SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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