Alcoholic beverages: tied-house restrictions.

Existing law, known as tied-house restrictions, prohibits specified licensees from furnishing, giving, or lending money or other thing of value, directly or indirectly, to a person engaged in operating, owning, or maintaining an off-sale licensed premises. This bill would authorize, until January 1, 2015, the appearance of a person employed or engaged by an authorized licensee at a promotional event held at the premises of an off-sale retail licensee for the purposes of providing autographs, subject to specified conditions. The Alcoholic Beverage Control Act provides that a violation of any of its provisions for which another penalty or punishment is not specifically provided is a misdemeanor. This bill would expand existing crimes by imposing additional requirements on a licensee under the act, thus, the 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.