Selling Alcohol for a Day: What to Pay?

In California, numerous organizations rely on special events to generate income-selling not only raffle tickets or food, but plenty of alcohol too. Service clubs, charities and even churches regularly make money selling alcoholic beverages at special events like fairs and festivals. But one statewide coalition of alcohol policy advocates pointed out that the tiny fees paid for the privilege of selling booze are not enough to offset the cost of the resulting problems.

State law requires organizations that want to sell alcohol at special events to apply to the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) for a Daily License and pay a modest fee of $15 to $30. Once the license is granted, groups can sell as much alcohol as they want. Some vendors have reportedly taken in more than $100,000 during a fair.

While special events can mean fun for fairgoers, and income for organizers and vendors, it's the surrounding community and law enforcement agencies that usually have to deal with the resulting alcohol-related disturbances and other problems. In fact, some events have become so problematic that attendance ultimately suffers and they are discontinued. One San Jose, California Cinco de Mayo festival was eventually shut down following alcohol-related violence and vandalism.

"There aren't enough funds now to cover the cost of enforcing regular retail licenses in communities ," says Joan Kiley of the California Council on Alcohol Policy (Cal Council), the group working to raise the fee for a Daily License. " Special events only add to the problem."

ABC issues 39,000 Daily Licenses a year in addition to the more than 66,000 licensed retail outlets it is responsible for monitoring on a daily basis. Yet with only 200 ABC investigators to oversee all alcohol-serving practices statewide, special events don't always get the enforcement attention they deserve. "There's no way ABC or local law enforcement can adequately monitor the number of special events in the state," says Lauren Tyson, ABC District Administrator. "We're stretched thin."

ABC prioritizes enforcement activities based on the severity of complaints, with sales to minors and intoxicated individuals among the most urgent problems. But, concedes Tyson, "Special events are sometimes over before we know there's a problem."

Kiley and her colleagues on the Cal Council think that vendors can afford to give back a little of their profits to offset the cost of the resulting problems. The Cal Council has already opened a dialogue with ABC, and plans to propose the following changes:

• Require Responsible Beverage Server Training for all organizations granted Daily Licenses;
• Increase Daily License fees significantly; and
• Allocate the additional funds raised from this measure to support enforcement at both local and state levels.

Kiley believes such policy change will improve safety and cost-effectiveness while allowing organizations to continue raising funds.