BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                     AB 394


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          Date of Hearing:  April 15, 2015


                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS


                                 Jimmy Gomez, Chair


          AB  
          394 (Mark Stone) - As Amended March 19, 2015


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          |Policy       |Governmental Organization      |Vote:|21 - 0       |
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          Urgency:  No  State Mandated Local Program:  NoReimbursable:  No


          SUMMARY:


          This bill, on or after January 1, 2019, requires any wine  
          bottled and labeled with an American Viticultural Area (AVA),  
          established pursuant to federal law, that is located entirely  
          within Monterey County to include the designation "Monterey  
          County" on the label, unless the federal AVA is "Monterey."


          FISCAL EFFECT:


          Minor and absorbable enforcement costs to the Department of  
          Alcoholic Beverage Control.








                                                                     AB 394


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          COMMENTS:


          1)Purpose.  According to the author, this conjunctive labeling  
            bill will ensure consumers recognize every bottle of wine that  
            is produced from Monterey County grapes.  The author believes  
            the additional labeling will build the Monterey County wine  
            brand and strengthen the county's position as a recognized,  
            world-class winegrowing region.  Similar conjunctive labeling  
            rules exist for Sonoma and Napa Counties as well as Lodi and  
            Paso Robles.


          2)Monterey Wine.  The Family Winegrowers of California (FWC)  
            indicate Monterey County is one of the fastest growing premium  
            vineyard and winery regions in the state.  According to the  
            Monterey County Vintners and Growers Association, there are  
            currently eight AVAs contained within the Monterey AVA: Arroyo  
            Seco, Carmel Valley, Chalone, Hames Valley, San Antonio  
            Valley, San Bernabe, San Lucas, and Santa Lucia Highlands.   
            FWC asserts it is important for these smaller, separate AVAs  
            to benefit from and contribute to the affinity with Monterey  
            County labeling, and that AB 394 will accommodate the desired  
            specificity of sub-appellation labeling while linking wine to  
            the broader Monterey AVA.





          Analysis Prepared by:Joel Tashjian / APPR. / (916)  
          319-2081













                                                                     AB 394


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