AB 593, as amended, Quirk. Alcoholic beverages: Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control.
(1) The Alcoholic Beverage Control Act is administered by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control and requires the department to perform various duties relating to the issuance of alcoholic beverage licences.
This bill would require the department to evaluate its onsite license review process for restaurants in order to implement a more expedited licensing process. This bill would also require the department to prepare and submit a report to the Legislature, on or before December 31, 2015, relating to the review.
(2) The Alcoholic Beverage Control Act requires specified applicants for on-sale or off-sale licensees to have a notice of the application published, as provided.
This bill would exempt from that requirement applicants that are required to provide specified notices via mail of applications for licenses, including retail licenses, and transfer of licenses, as provided.
(3) Existing law provides that protests against the issuance of a liquor license may be filed with the department. Existing law permits the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control to reject protests, except protests made by a public agency, public official, or governing body of a city or county, it determines to be false, vexatious, or without reasonable or probable cause.
This bill would permit the department to reject protests, except protests made by a public agency, public official, or governing body of a city or county, it determines are invalid or unreasonable, as described. The bill would also require a protest submitted by a person other than an employee of the department or a public officer to be submitted by an individual and limit the protest to one signatory.
(4) This bill would also make legislative findings related to legislation to provide guidance and direction to the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control and the Alcoholic Beverage Control Appeals Board.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
The Legislature finds and declares all of the
2following:
3(a) That it is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation
4that would require the Alcoholic Beverage Control Appeals Board
5to issue its decisions within 120 days of a hearing.
6(b) That it is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation
7that would provide the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control
8with recruitment and retention incentives.
Section 23059 is added to the Business and Professions
10Code, to read:
(a) The department shall evaluate its onsite license
12review process for restaurants that are bona fide eating places in
13order to implement a more expedited licensing process.
14(b) (1) On or before December 31, 2015, the department shall
15prepare and submit to the Legislature a report on the findings
16regarding the onsite review process described in subdivision (a).
17(c) The report required by subdivision (b) shall be submitted in
18compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
19(d) This section shall remain in effect only until
January 1, 2016,
20and as of that date is repealed.
Section 23986 of the Business and Professions Code
2 is amended to read:
(a) Any applicant for an on-sale license shall cause a
4notice of the application, giving the name or names of the applicant
5and the premises where the business is to be conducted, to be
6published pursuant to Section 6061 of the Government Code in a
7newspaper of general circulation, other than a legal or professional
8trade publication, in the city in which the premises are situated, or
9if the premises are not in a city, the publication shall be made in
10a newspaper of general circulation nearest the premises where the
11business is to be conducted. The form of the notice shall be
12prescribed by the department. Affidavit of publication shall be
13filed with the department prior to the issuance of any license. The
14department
shall adopt rules and regulations to enforce the
15provisions of this section.
16(b) Any applicant for an on-sale or off-sale license at a premises
17which is located in a census tract which has an undue concentration
18of licenses, as defined in paragraph (2) or (3) of subdivision (a) of
19Section 23958.4, shall cause a notice of the application to be
20published pursuant to Section 6063 of the Government Code in a
21newspaper of general circulation other than a legal or trade
22publication. Publication shall be made in the city in which the
23premises are situated, or if the premises are not in a city, the
24publication shall be made in a newspaper of general circulation
25nearest the premises where the business is to be conducted. The
26form of the notice shall be prescribed by the department. Affidavit
27of publication shall be filed with the department prior to
the
28issuance of any license. The department shall adopt rules and
29regulations to enforce the provisions of this subdivision.
30(c) This section shall not apply to any licensee subject to the
31notification requirements of Section 23985.5 or Section 23987.
Section 24013 of the Business and Professions Code
33 is amended to read:
(a) Protests may be filed at any office of the department
35within 30 days from the first date of posting the notice of intention
36to engage in the sale of alcoholic beverages at the premises, within
3730 days of the mailing of the notification pursuant to Section
3823985.5, or within 30 days of the mailing of the notices of the
39department to public officials as required by Section 23987,
40whichever is later. The time within which a local law enforcement
P4 1agency may file a protest shall be extended by the period prescribed
2in Section 23987, pursuant to a request made under that section.
3(b) (1) The department may reject protests, except protests
4made by a public agency or
public official or protests made by the
5governing body of a city or county, if it determines the protests
6are false, vexatious, frivolous, invalid or unreasonable, or without
7reasonable or probable cause at any time before hearing thereon,
8notwithstanding Section 24016 or 24300. If, after investigation,
9the department recommends that a license be issued
10notwithstanding a protest by a public agency, a public official, or
11the governing body of a city or county, the department shall notify
12the agency, official, or governing body in writing of its
13determination and the reasons therefor, in conjunction with the
14notice of hearing provided to the protestant pursuant to Section
1511509 of the Government Code. If the department rejects a protest
16as provided in this section and issues a license, a protestant whose
17protest has been rejected may, within 10 days after the issuance
18of the license, file an
accusation with the department alleging the
19grounds of protest as a cause for revocation of the license and the
20department shall hold a hearing as provided in Chapter 5
21(commencing with Section 11500) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title
222 of the Government Code.
23(2) For purposes of this subdivision,begin delete anend delete invalid or unreasonable
24begin delete protest includesend deletebegin insert protests includeend insert, butbegin delete isend deletebegin insert areend insert not limited to,begin delete a protest begin insert
examples determined, and
25that the department determines is ____.end delete
26made available to the public, by the department in a manner the
27department deems appropriate for the protest process.end insert
28(c) Nothing in this section shall be construed as prohibiting or
29restricting any right that the individual making the protest might
30have to a judicial proceeding.
Section 24014 of the Business and Professions Code
32 is amended to read:
(a) A protest made by any person other than an
34employee of the department or a public officer shall be verified.
35Verification may be on information and belief.
36(b) A protest made pursuant to this section shall be submitted
37by an individual and shall be limited to one signatory.
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