BILL NUMBER: AB 1598 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Beall
JANUARY 4, 2010
An act to add Section 25622 to the Business and Professions Code,
relating to alcoholic beverages.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1598, as introduced, Beall. Alcoholic beverages: caffeinated
malt beverages.
The Alcoholic Beverage Control Act contains various provisions
regulating the application for, the issuance of, the suspension of,
and the conditions imposed upon, alcoholic beverage licenses by the
Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control.
This bill would prohibit the import, production, manufacture,
distribution, or sale of caffeinated malt beverages, as defined, at
retail locations within the state. This bill would also provide that
a person that violates this prohibition is guilty of an infraction
and would provide for either the imposition of a monetary fine or
suspension of the licensee's license for first and 2nd violations of
this prohibition and for revocation of the licensee's license for a
3rd violation.
By creating a new crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated
local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
This bill would delay the operative date of this prohibition until
6 months from the bill's effective date.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) The 21st Amendment to the United States Constitution grants
states the authority to regulate the sale and distribution of
alcoholic beverages.
(b) Alcohol is a leading cause of death and injury, from impaired
driving to violence, sexual assault, and suicide, and contributes to
family and community disruption and poor school performance, among
other things.
(c) Combining alcohol with caffeine and other stimulants does not
ameliorate alcohol's negative effects on one's motor coordination and
visual reaction times.
(d) Adding caffeine and other stimulants to alcohol is potentially
harmful because these additives may impair one's ability to judge
his or her own level of intoxication as well as the ability to judge
the level of intoxication in someone else. This may result in
increased alcohol consumption and can lead drinkers to wrongly
conclude that they are capable of engaging in risky and potentially
dangerous activities, like operating a motor vehicle or engaging in
risky sexual behavior.
(e) Young people are particularly vulnerable to increased problems
associated with the use of these products as they are more likely to
misjudge their own intoxication level, more likely to take risks
than adults, and more likely to suffer from high rates of alcohol
problems, including alcohol-related traffic accidents, violence,
sexual assault, and suicide.
(f) The marketing of malt beverage products containing caffeine
and other stimulants associates the products with nonalcoholic energy
drinks and other soft drinks through the use of containers with
similar sizes, shapes, and graphics. These similarities create the
potential for confusion among adult and youth consumers, retailers,
parents, law enforcement officers, and others regarding the alcohol
content of a particular product.
(g) The marketing of malt beverage products containing caffeine
and other stimulants appears to be directed primarily at young people
through the use of nontraditional marketing campaigns, including
interacting with consumers through social networking sites like
MySpace and Facebook and product giveaways at events during spring
break or extreme sports venues.
(h) The combination of stimulants and depressants may place undue
strain on the heart and central nervous system.
(i) The overuse of caffeine can result in acute overdoses that can
cause health problems including anxiety, heart palpitation, mania,
depression, lapses of judgment, and, in extreme cases, death.
(j) The marketing messages of malt beverage products containing
caffeine and other stimulants imply that they have energizing effects
and fail to disclose to consumers the adverse effects and
consequences associated with their consumption.
SEC. 2. Section 25622 is added to the Business and Professions
Code, to read:
25622. (a) Beginning on and after six months from the effective
date of this section, caffeinated malt beverages shall not be
imported into this state, produced, manufactured, or distributed
within this state, or sold by a licensed retailer within this state.
(b) For purposes of this section, "caffeinated malt beverage"
means a beverage for which the producer is required to file a formula
for approval with the United States Alcohol and Tobacco Trade and
Tax Bureau pursuant to Section 25.55 of Title 27 of the Code of
Federal Regulations, that is not exempt under subdivision (f)
thereof, and is either of the following:
(1) A beverage containing at least 0.5 percent alcohol by volume
that is produced by a brewer, as defined in Section 5092 of Title 26
of the United States Code, to which is added or infused caffeine or
other stimulants, alone or in combination, including, but not limited
to, guarana, ginseng, and taurine.
(2) A beverage containing at least 0.5 percent alcohol by volume
that is treated by processing, filtration, or another method of
manufacture that is not generally recognized as a traditional process
in the production of beer, as described in Section 25.55 of Title 27
of the Code of Federal Regulations, to which is added a flavor or
other ingredient containing alcohol, except for a hop extract, and
caffeine or other stimulants, alone or in combination, including, but
not limited to, guarana, ginseng, and taurine.
(c) Any person that violates this section is guilty of an
infraction. The department shall, for a first violation of
subdivision (a), either impose a monetary penalty of not more than
one thousand dollars ($1,000) or suspend the license of the licensee.
The department shall, for a second violation of subdivision (a),
either impose a monetary penalty of not more than five thousand
dollars ($5,000) or suspend the license of a licensee. The department
shall, for a third violation of subdivision (a), revoke the license
of the licensee. Any monetary penalty imposed under this section
shall be deposited in the Alcoholic Beverage Control Fund, for
allocation as set forth in subdivision (d) of Section 25761.
(d) The department may promulgate rules and regulations to
effectuate the purposes of this law.
SEC. 3. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.