CA-Over 170 Cited in a Statewide Underage Drinking Enforcement Operation

ABC and nearly 50 law enforcement agencies team up to protect youth

Agents from the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) and officers from nearly 50 local police and sheriff’s departments cited more than 170 individuals during Operation Shoulder Tap 2022, a statewide underage drinking enforcement operation designed to create awareness about the dangers of underage drinking and keep communities safe.

One goal of the operation is to demonstrate the serious consequences for adults that buy alcohol for minors. “Unfortunately, thousands of young people die in alcohol-related tragedies every year in this country,” said ABC Director Eric Hirata. “This collaborative effort among California law enforcement agencies spotlights underage drinking prevention, increases public safety for communities, and boosts protections for California’s youth.”

The operation resulted in citations for 170 individuals who allegedly furnished alcoholic beverages to minors. At least eight other individuals were cited for open containers, public drunkenness, or taken into custody for various crimes or outstanding warrants. The operation keeps communities safe by holding individuals accountable for harmful, illegal activities.

Celebrate Responsibly this St. Patrick’s Day through Smart Decisions

As St. Patrick’s Day approaches, agents with the Ohio Investigative Unit (OIU) and officials with the Ohio Division of Liquor Control (DOLC) want to make sure this is a safe holiday.

“Patron safety should always be the top priority of any liquor permit premise,” said OIU Enforcement Commander Eric Wolf. “Patron safety starts with vigilant staff.” 

Liquor permit establishments should ensure:

• Staff is properly checking identifications to verify the customers are 21 or older, not just at the door, but at the point of sale;
• Intoxicated patrons are not served;
• Staff watch for anyone attempting to tamper with drinks; and
• Staff and patrons are not bringing illegal drugs into their establishments or adjacent sidewalks and parking lots.

“St. Patrick’s Day makes for a very busy time for liquor permit establishments,” said Jim Canepa, DOLC Superintendent. “Selling liquor responsibly is of the utmost importance, and we know liquor permit holders and staff take their responsibility seriously to follow the law to keep their customers safe.”

Ohio lawmakers move to change law banning free alcohol at fundraisers in homes

From Tupperware parties to political fundraisers and other charitable events held in private homes, serving alcohol to guests is illegal under Ohio law.  "I was certainly unaware of this law until a constituent was charged with several misdemeanors for violating it," state Rep. Kristin Boggs, D-Columbus, said.

Now Boggs is leading an effort to change the law. Ohio's “Keeper of a Place” law has been on the books since 1908. Boggs' constituent found himself charged with a first-degree misdemeanor because he invited out-of-work musicians to play at his house during the pandemic and then collected donations while alcohol was being served. 

How did homeowner violate Ohio's 'Keeper of a Place' alcohol law?

"Attendees brought beer and food that was shared with other guests," Boggs said. "No money was charged to attend, or for the beer, but at the end of the night a donation hat was passed around for guests to contribute to the musicians."

How might liquor laws change in Massachusetts?

After dodging what would have been a well-financed ballot campaign to lift the cap on alcohol licenses for food stores, Massachusetts package store owners told lawmakers they've come to the table with a compromise that is essential for their future survival.

The Massachusetts Package Stores Association has proposed a change to state liquor licensing laws to double the number of allowable licenses any one retailer can hold to 18 by 2031, but to reduce the cap on licenses for the sale of all alcoholic beverages — beer, wine and liquor — from nine to seven.

The proposal wending its way toward the November ballot would also put new rules in place prohibiting self-checkout of alcoholic beverages and allowing retailers to accept out-of-state IDs.

Oklahoma Senate alcohol bill reconsidered, passes floor

An Oklahoma Senate bill that failed on the Senate floor on March 9 was reconsidered on Monday and passed. Senate Bill 1708 would allow grocery store and convenience store employees that are at least 16 years old to unload and stock beer. Proposed bills could change Oklahoma’s alcohol lawsSB1708’s author, Senator Lonnie Paxton, R-District 23, said on the Senate floor on March 14 that he felt he didn’t adequately explain what the intent of the bill was, which led to it failing on the floor the first go around with a 21-20 vote. “Members, I appreciate the option to reconsider this vote that had failed last week. I talked to several members about this bill. This is the bill that is a request of the Grocers Association,” said Sen. Paxton during SB1708’s second time on the Senate floor. “Apparently I did not do a really good job explaining that last time because some people thought this would allow 16 year olds to work in liquor stores or serve liquor behind a bar. It does not. This is just concentrated on grocery stores and convenience stores to move the age from 18 to 16 when you’re checking out so they don’t have to go find somebody that’s over 21 to come and swipe the card so they can check out a bottle of wine.”

New Innovations Pour Into the Alcoholic Beverages Space

Hard seltzers, ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktails and flavored malt beverages have all had their moment in the spotlight. And while trends wax and wane, industry data projects that these drinks will continue driving consumers’ alcohol consumption and purchase patterns for several years to come — and that means convenience store retailers must embrace the “Beyond Beer” category to capture the sales buzz these beverages deliver.

“The past few years have seen a significant rise in the popularity of alcoholic beverage segments together referred to as ‘Ready to Drink’ or ‘Beyond Beer,’” according to the 2021 RTD/Beyond Beer Path to Purchase Study from VideoMining, a provider of in-store behavior analytics for CPG retail. “Numerous competitive products have entered the market with a multitude of flavors, functional benefits, package formats, and alcohol bases.”

Google dupes diners, sidelines restaurants for delivery profits - lawsuit

Alphabet Inc's Google has been making unauthorized pages for restaurants and using them to take a cut of fees from delivery orders through sites like Postmates, DoorDash and Grubhub, according to a lawsuit Tuesday in San Francisco federal court.

The proposed class action filed by Left Field Holdings, a Florida franchisee of Lime Fresh Mexican restaurants, said Google has been creating illegitimate digital "storefronts" for restaurants and deceiving users into thinking that the restaurants approved them.

TTB Issues Additional Guidance on Trade Practices

As part of our continuing effort to ensure a level playing field and provide clarity to the alcohol beverage industry, TTB has updated its Trade Practices page to provide additional guidance regarding payment terms under the consignment sales provisions of the Federal Alcohol Administration Act (see TTB Industry Circular 2022-1) and answers to frequently asked questions (see General Trade Practices FAQs).

Separately, as the recent Treasury Report on Competition in the Wine, Beer and Spirits Market recommends, TTB is actively considering rulemaking to update its trade practice regulations. As always, any proposed changes in the regulations will be offered for public comment.

The Sweet Spot for Direct Wine Sales

For US wineries, finding the happy medium between direct-to-consumer sales and the three-tier system is paramount.

A primary focus on the director-to-consumer (DtC) sales channel is clearly both a lifesaver, in terms of margins; and a limitation, in terms of overall profits; as to how much wine can be sold by wineries. If a winery is limited to only the DtC channel, by total-production size or preference, they may well be barely known outside of their home turf or able to build a national brand.

According to Larry Cormier, the vice president and general manager of the Boulder, Colorado-based SOVOS ShipCompliant, which tracks DtC shipments, "our years of tracking data … show that wineries of all sizes participate in the [DtC] channel and that historically and currently, small wineries [defined as those producing 5000 to 49,999 cases annually] have really depended on …[it] for their success. Per our 2022 report, the small-winery size category accounts for 43.3 percent of all wine shipped DtC in the United States."