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AB-1605 • 2026

Driving under the influence: alcohol sales.

Driving under the influence: alcohol sales.

Crime Education Labor
Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Ransom
Last action
2026-04-06
Official status
Re-referred to Com. on G.O.
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill summary and digest do not provide specific details about penalties for violating ID-checking rules or enforcement by alcohol sellers.

Driving Under Influence: Alcohol Sales

This law requires alcohol sellers to check IDs and bans people with certain DUI convictions from buying alcohol.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires alcohol sellers to review identification before selling alcoholic drinks.
  • Makes it a crime for alcohol sellers not to follow ID-checking rules.
  • Allows courts to ban people convicted of specific DUI offenses from buying alcohol.
  • Requires the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to put special labels on IDs or licenses of those banned from buying alcohol.
  • Forbids alcohol sellers from serving anyone with a DMV label banning them from buying alcohol.

Who It Names or Affects

  • People who sell alcoholic drinks
  • Individuals convicted of certain DUI offenses

Terms To Know

DUI
Driving Under the Influence, which means driving while affected by alcohol or drugs.
DMV
Department of Motor Vehicles, a state agency that issues driver's licenses and vehicle registrations.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify the exact penalties for violating ID-checking rules.
  • It is unclear how strictly alcohol sellers will follow new restrictions on selling to banned individuals.

Bill History

  1. 2026-04-06 California Legislative Information

    Re-referred to Com. on G.O.

  2. 2026-03-26 California Legislative Information

    Read second time and amended.

  3. 2026-03-25 California Legislative Information

    From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on G.O. (Ayes 8. Noes 0.) (March 24).

  4. 2026-03-17 California Legislative Information

    Re-referred to Com. on PUB. S.

  5. 2026-03-16 California Legislative Information

    From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on PUB. S. Read second time and amended.

  6. 2026-03-10 California Legislative Information

    Re-referred to Com. on PUB. S.

  7. 2026-03-09 California Legislative Information

    From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on PUB. S. Read second time and amended.

  8. 2026-03-09 California Legislative Information

    Referred to Coms. on PUB. S. and G.O.

  9. 2026-01-21 California Legislative Information

    From printer. May be heard in committee February 20.

  10. 2026-01-20 California Legislative Information

    Read first time. To print.

Official Summary Text

AB 1605, as amended, Ransom.
Driving under the influence: alcohol sales.
Existing law, the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act, provides for the issuance, suspension, revocation, and conditions upon licensure for the manufacture, distribution, and sale of alcoholic beverages. Existing law makes every person who sells, furnishes, gives, or causes to be sold, furnished or given away any alcoholic beverage to any person under 21 years of age guilty of a misdemeanor.
Existing law also makes it unlawful for a person who is under the influence of any alcoholic beverage or drug, or the combined influence of both, to drive a vehicle and requires a court, when granting probation following conviction of a driving under the influence offense, to impose certain terms and conditions, including that the individual not drive a vehicle with any measurable amount of alcohol in their blood, among others.
This bill would require everyone who sells or furnishes alcoholic beverages to first review a form of written identification issued by this state or another
state and would make a violation of this requirement a misdemeanor. The bill would require a court, subject to an exception,
state. The bill would authorize a court
when granting probation for certain driving under the influence offenses to prohibit the person from purchasing alcohol and would require the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue an identification card or driver’s license with an appropriate designation on the face upon the receipt of an abstract of the record of a court. The bill would authorize the court to prohibit the purchase of alcohol when
the underlying conviction involved a certain percentage of alcohol, the offense occurred within 3 years of a separate driving under the influence offense, or the offense involved property damage or great bodily injury, as specified.
the offense occurred within 10 years of 2 or more driving under the influence offenses that resulted in conviction or certain other prior convictions, or if the conviction was for vehicular manslaughter, as specified.
The bill would require a seller of alcoholic beverages to refuse to sell or serve someone subject to such an
order and would make the sale of an alcoholic beverage to that individual a misdemeanor.
order.
Because the bill would create a new crime, and to the extent it
To
the extent this bill
would require a higher level of service from court staff who are county employees, 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 with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state,
reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
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, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
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