Amended in Senate April 22, 2015

Amended in Senate April 6, 2015

Senate Bill No. 327

Introduced by Senator Hall

February 23, 2015

An act to amend begin delete Sections 24045, 24045.1, and 25633 of end delete begin insert Section 25500.1 of, and to repeal Section 25502.1 of, end insert the Business and Professions Code, relating to alcoholic beverages.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 327, as amended, Hall. Alcoholic beverages: begin delete licensees. end delete begin insert licensees: tied-house restrictions. end insert

begin insert

Existing law, known as tied-house restrictions, prohibits a manufacturer, winegrower, manufacturer’s agent, rectifier, California winegrower’s agent, distiller, bottler, importer, and wholesaler, and any officer, director, or agent of any of those persons, from having specified relationships with an on-sale and off-sale alcoholic beverage licensee with limited exceptions, and makes a violation of these prohibitions punishable as a misdemeanor.

end insert begin insert

Existing law, with certain exceptions, prohibits a manufacturer of alcoholic beverages and a winegrower from paying, crediting, or compensating a retailer for advertising or paying or giving anything of value for the privilege of placing a sign or advertisement with a retail licensee. In this context, existing law specifies that the listing of specified information, including Internet Web site addresses, regarding two or more unaffiliated on-sale or off-sale retailers is not a thing of value or a prohibited inducement, if certain conditions are met.

end insert begin insert

This bill would recast those provisions to specify that for off-sale retailers, as with on-sale retailers, the listing of other electronic media does not constitute a thing of value or a prohibited inducement, and would make other changes of a conforming or nonsubstantive nature.

end insert begin delete

The Alcoholic Beverage Control Act authorizes the issuance of a special license for the sale of beer or wine on a temporary basis to a licensee for a picnic, social gathering, or similar occasion. The act also prohibits alcoholic beverages from being delivered to on-sale and off-sale licensees on Sunday and prohibits delivery on any other day except between the hours of 3 a.m. 8 P.M..

end delete begin delete

This bill instead would allow beer wholesalers and specified beer manufacturers to deliver beer to holders of the special license described above between the hours of 6 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Sunday. The bill would make conforming technical changes.

end delete

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  begin delete yes end delete begin insert no end insert . State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

begin insert

begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 25500.1 of the end insert begin insert Business and Professions
Code end insert begin insert is amended to read: end insert

25500.1.  

(a) The listing of the names, addresses, telephone
numbers, email addresses, or Internet Web site addresses, or other
electronic media, of two or more unaffiliated on-sale begin insert or off-sale end insert
retailers selling beer, wine, or distilled spirits produced, distributed,
or imported by a nonretail industry member in response to a direct
inquiry from a consumer received by telephone, by mail, by
electronic inquiry, or in person does not constitute a thing of value
or prohibited inducement to the listed on-sale begin insert or off-sale end insert retailer,
provided all of the following conditions are met:

(1) The listing does not also contain the retail price of the
product.

(2) The listing is the only reference to the on-sale begin insert or off-sale end insert
retailers in the direct communication.

(3) The listing does not refer only to one on-sale begin insert or off-sale end insert
retailer or only to on-sale begin insert or off-sale end insert retail establishments controlled
directly or indirectly by the same begin delete on-sale end delete retailer.

(4) The listing is made by, or produced by, or paid for,
exclusively by the nonretail industry member making the response.

(b) For the purposes of this section, “nonretail industry member”
is defined as a manufacturer, including, but not limited to, a beer
manufacturer, winegrower, or distiller of alcoholic beverages or
an agent of that entity, or a wholesaler, regardless of any other
licenses held directly or indirectly by that person.

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 25502.1 of the end insert begin insert Business and Professions Code end insert
begin insert is repealed. end insert

begin delete

25502.1.  

(a) Notwithstanding Section 25502, the listing of the
names, addresses, telephone numbers, e-mail addresses, or Internet
Web site addresses, of two or more unaffiliated off-sale retailers
selling the products produced, distributed or imported by a nonretail
industry member in response to a direct inquiry from a consumer
received by telephone, by mail, by electronic inquiry or in person
does not constitute a thing of value or prohibited inducement to
the listed off-sale retailer, provided all of the following conditions
are met:

(1) The listing does not also contain the retail price of the
product.

(2) The listing is the only reference to the off-sale retailers in
the direct communication.

(3) The listing does not refer only to one off-sale retailer or only
to off-sale retail establishments controlled directly or indirectly
by the same off-sale retailer.

(4) The listing is made by, or produced by, or paid for,
exclusively by the nonretail industry member making the response.

(b) For the purposes of this section, “nonretail industry member”
is defined as a manufacturer, including, but not limited to, a beer
manufacturer, winegrower, or distiller of alcoholic beverages, or
an agent of those entities, or a wholesaler, regardless of any other
licenses held directly or indirectly by that person.

end delete

begin delete

SECTION 1.  

Section 24045 of the Business and Professions
Code is amended to read:

24045.  

(a) All licenses, except on-sale general licenses for
seasonal businesses and daily on-sale general licenses issued
pursuant to Section 24045.1, shall be issued on an annual basis.

(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), a license transferred
pursuant to Section 24071 or 24071.1 shall be issued for the
unexpired term remaining on the license of the transferor.

(c) The director may assign or reassign dates for the expiration
of licenses issued pursuant to this section. The director may
establish a registration year for any license issued pursuant to
subdivision (a) consisting of any period from six months to 18
months, inclusive, and shall prorate related annual fees to the extent
the registration year is greater or less than 12 months, with
subsequent renewals being required at yearly intervals.

SEC. 2.  

Section 24045.1 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended to read:

24045.1.  

(a) The department, in its discretion, may issue on a
temporary basis a daily on-sale general license and the fee for the
license shall be twenty-five dollars ($25) per day. The license
authorizes the sale of distilled spirits, wine, and beer for
consumption on the premises where sold, and off-sale privileges
shall not be exercised under the license. A daily on-sale general
license may only be issued to a political party or affiliate supporting
a candidate for public office or a ballot measure, an organization
formed for a specific charitable or civic purpose, a fraternal
organization in existence for over five years with a regular
membership, or a religious organization. Distilled spirits sold under
a daily on-sale general license shall have been purchased at retail
from the holder of an off-sale general license.

(b) (1) The department may issue a special license for the sale
of beer or wine on a temporary basis for premises temporarily
occupied by a licensee for a picnic, social gathering, or similar
occasion at a fee equal to the actual cost of issuing the license, but
not to exceed twenty-five dollars ($25) per day.

(2) (A) In addition to the hours and days specified in Section
25633, a beer wholesaler may deliver beer between the hours of
6 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Sunday to a licensee who has obtained a
license pursuant to this section.

(B) In addition to the hours and days specified in Section 25633,
a beer manufacturer that self-distributes may deliver beer that is
produced pursuant to Section 23357 between the hours of 6 a.m.
and 2 p.m. on Sunday to a licensee who has obtained a license
pursuant to this section.

(c) The department may adopt such rules as it determines to be
necessary to implement and administer the provisions of this
section, including, but not limited to, limitations on the number
of times during any calendar year a qualified organization may be
issued a license provided for by this section.

(d) The provisions of Article 2 (commencing with Section
23815) of Chapter 5 and Article 2 (commencing with Section
23985) of Chapter 6 of this division shall not be applicable to the
licenses provided for by this section.

SEC. 3.  

Section 25633 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended to read:

25633.  

Except as otherwise provided in this section and
paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 24045.1, a person
licensed as a manufacturer, winegrower, distilled spirits
manufacturer’s agent, rectifier, or wholesaler of any alcoholic
beverage shall not deliver or cause to be delivered any alcoholic
beverage to or for any person holding an on-sale or off-sale license
on Sunday or except between the hours of 3 a.m. and 8 p.m. of
any day other than Sunday. Any alcoholic beverage may be
delivered at the platform of the manufacturing, producing, or
distributing plant at any time. Nothing contained in this section
prohibits the transportation or the carriage and delivery in transit
at any time of any alcoholic beverage between the premises of a
manufacturer, winegrower, wholesaler, distiller, importer, or any
of them. Every person violating the provisions of this section is
guilty of a misdemeanor.

end delete