BILL ANALYSIS Ó SB 1285 Page 1 Date of Hearing: August 10, 2016 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Lorena Gonzalez, Chair SB 1285 (Leno) - As Amended August 2, 2016 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Policy |Governmental Organization |Vote:|12 - 0 | |Committee: | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: YesReimbursable: No SUMMARY: This bill authorizes the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) to issue additional on-sale general alcohol licenses within the County and City of San Francisco. Specifically, this bill: 1)Allows for a maximum of 5 new and nontransferable on-sale general licenses to bona fide eating places located within specific Census Tracts in the County and City of San Francisco, starting on January 1, 2017. SB 1285 Page 2 2)Requires applicants to hold a pre-application meeting to discuss the application with community members and neighbors and requires the applicant to notify certain organizations, officials, and residents, as defined, prior to this meeting. FISCAL EFFECT: Any additional licensing and oversight costs for ABC associated with this legislation will be minor and absorbable. COMMENTS: 1)Purpose and Background. According to the author, SB 1285 will create a new type of neighborhood-restricted, nontransferable liquor license for restaurants in order to promote economic development in San Francisco's underdeveloped commercial areas. Existing state law caps the number of new on and off-sale general licenses issued by ABC at 1 for every 2,500 inhabitants of a county. If no licenses are available from the state due to the population restrictions, those interested in obtaining a license may purchase one from an existing licensee at the market price According to the author, the market price for a liquor license is around $300,000, making them inaccessible for small business owners in San Francisco's outer neighborhoods. 2)Other related legislation. AB 1670 (Dodd), pending in the SB 1285 Page 3 Senate Appropriations Committee, allows 5 on-sale general licenses, over a 1-year period, for bona fide public eating places public premises in Napa County. AB 1558 (Mathis) of 2016, pending on the Senate Floor, allows 5 new on-sale general licenses, over a 2-year period, for bona fide public eating places public premises, or both, in Inyo County. In addition to the two aforementioned bills, a number of recent bills have created specific license exemptions for individual counties. Those bills are: a) AB 461 (Achadjian), Chapter 110, Statutes of 2013: Authorized ABC to issue no more five new original on-sale general licenses, over a three-year period, for bona fide public eating places in San Luis Obispo County. b) AB 1320 (Allen), Chapter 467, Statutes of 2012: Authorized ABC to issue no more 15 new original on-sale general licenses, over a three-year period, for bona fide public eating places in Marin County. c) SB 762 (Cox), Chapter 193, Statutes of 2007: Authorized ABC to issue 10 new original on-sale general licenses for bona fide public eating places in Mono County. Analysis Prepared by:Luke Reidenbach / APPR. / (916) 319-2081 SB 1285 Page 4