FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 25, 2023

SACRAMENTO – The Senate Governmental Organization Committee handed Senator Scott Wiener’s (D-San Francisco) invoice SB 76, The Entertainment Zones Act. The invoice authorizes cities to create “Entertainment Zones” in public areas and aids the restoration of brick-and-mortar eating places and bars by eradicating obstacles to their participation in outside occasions like road gala’s and festivals. SB 76 handed 14-0, with bipartisan assist, and now heads to the Appropriations Committee

“Small businesses are the lifeblood of our economy, and we need to take common sense steps to help them recover,” mentioned Senator Wiener. “We also need to activate public spaces as our downtowns and neighborhoods recover from the pandemic. It makes no sense to allow outside vendors to come into a neighborhood to sell to-go drinks during a street fair while banning brick-and-mortar businesses from doing the same. This overdue reform makes our communities more vibrant and opens new sources of revenue at a time our small businesses badly need it.”

Under present regulation, licensed companies could are available in from outdoors a neighborhood to arrange cubicles to promote alcoholic drinks to-go throughout a road honest or pageant, however neighboring eating places and bars are forbidden from doing the identical. SB 76 would permit municipalities to designate momentary Entertainment Zones through which brick-and-mortar bars and eating places might promote alcohol to-go on equal footing with the pageant’s licensed distributors.

SB 76 is sponsored by the National Independent Venue Association of California, the California Nightlife Association, and the Bay Area Council. Read extra about SB 76 right here.

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