The Alcoholic Beverage Control Act contains limitations on sales commonly known as “tied-house” restrictions, which generally prohibit a manufacturer, winegrower, manufacturer’s agent, California winegrower’s agent, rectifier, distiller, bottler, importer, or wholesaler from furnishing, giving, or lending any money or other thing of value to any person engaged in operating, owning, or maintaining any off-sale licensed premises. For purposes of these provisions, the listing of the names, addresses, telephone numbers, or email addresses, or both, or Internet Web site addresses, of 2 or more unaffiliated on-sale retailers selling beer, wine, or distilled spirits and operating and licensed as bona fide public eating places selling the beer, wine, or distilled spirits produced, distributed, or imported by a nonretail industry member in response to a direct inquiry from a consumer, as specified, does not constitute a thing of value or prohibited inducement to the listed on-sale retailer, if specified conditions are met.

This bill would provide that the listing of names, addresses, telephone numbers, or email addresses in other forms of electronic media do not constitute a thing of value and would revise the direct inquiry provisions to remove the requirement that the unaffiliated on-sale retailer operate and be licensed as a bona fide public eating place.