Allows extra restaurant liquor licenses in San Francisco

Existing law, the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act, administered by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, regulates the sale and distribution of alcoholic beverages and the granting of licenses for the manufacture, distribution, and sale of alcoholic beverages within the state. Existing law limits the amount of on-sale general licenses that may be issued by the department based on the population of the county in which the licensed premises are located.

This bill would provide an exception to the limitation described above by authorizing the issuance of up to 20 additional new original on-sale general licenses, as specified, for bona fide public eating places located within a designated hospitality zone in the City and County of San Francisco, as defined. In order to authorize the issuance of additional licenses as described above, the bill would require an ordinance adopted by the local governing body of the City and County of San Francisco to designate or modify a hospitality zone to include specified information and findings. The bill would authorize the local governing body, in an ordinance designating or modifying a hospitality zone, to further limit, among other things, the maximum number of additional licenses to be issued within its hospitality zone. The bill would require the local governing body to submit the ordinance to the department upon the adoption of an ordinance to modify or repeal a hospitality zone. The bill would require any ordinance to establish, modify, or repeal a hospitality zone to be effective commencing the following July 1. The bill would require the department to follow specified procedures concerning the issuance of these licenses, and would authorize the department to designate these licenses as on-sale general for special use. The bill would prohibit licenses issued under its provisions from being, among other things, transferred from one county to another. If one of those licenses is canceled or revoked, the bill would authorize the department to issue an additional license. The bill would prohibit the department from issuing any license under these provisions after July 1, 2033.

This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the City and County of San Francisco.