An act to amend Sections 23358, 23502, 23504, and 23504.5 of the Business and Professions Code, relating to alcoholic beverages.
AB 1246 revises several provisions of California’s Alcoholic Beverage Control Act to expand privileges for winegrowers and craft distillers. For winegrowers, it expressly authorizes possession and transport of brandy for aging on the winery premises, and allows craft distillers to move brandy to and from a licensed winegrower for that same purpose. For craft distillers, the bill increases the amount of prepackaged spirits that may be sold directly to a consumer at the distiller’s premises from 2.25 liters to 4.5 liters per day per consumer.
The bill also updates California’s direct-to-consumer shipping rules for distilled spirits. It extends the existing direct shipping framework through January 1, 2027, and expands eligibility to qualifying out-of-state distillers, provided they meet California’s craft distiller standards and hold a new distilled spirits direct shipper permit. The permit system requires an application, fees, recordkeeping, age-verification procedures, audit access, and consent to California jurisdiction. Shipping or selling distilled spirits directly to consumers without the permit is made a misdemeanor.
In practical terms, AB 1246 affects the Business and Professions Code sections governing winegrowers, craft distillers, and direct shippers, while also creating a new permit-based compliance regime administered by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. It broadens market access for small distillers and wineries, increases consumer purchasing options, and adds enforcement tools for the department. Because the bill expands criminal liability for unpermitted direct shipping, it is treated as creating a state-mandated local program, though the bill states no reimbursement is required.
The overall sentiment around the bill appears strongly favorable and largely noncontroversial. It moved through both houses with unanimous or near-unanimous committee support and overwhelmingly positive floor votes, including a 73-1 concurrence vote in the Assembly on Senate amendments. The absence of recorded committee transcript opposition suggests the bill was viewed as a targeted industry and consumer access measure rather than a contentious regulatory overhaul.
The main point of potential contention is the balance between expanded alcohol commerce and regulatory control. Supporters would likely favor the added flexibility for craft distillers, winery-brandy aging, and out-of-state direct shipping, while any concerns would center on enforcement, underage access, and the new misdemeanor for unpermitted shipments. The bill’s temporary extension through 2027 also suggests lawmakers intended to revisit the policy after observing how the expanded shipping and sales rules operate in practice.
AB 1246 amends Business and Professions Code sections 23358, 23502, 23504, and 23504.5 to expand the privileges of licensed winegrowers and craft distillers, and to create a permit-based direct-shipping regime for distilled spirits. It increases on-premises consumer sales limits for craft distillers, authorizes brandy transport and aging arrangements between craft distillers and winegrowers, and extends direct shipping authority to qualifying out-of-state distillers subject to Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control permitting and enforcement. It also adds a misdemeanor penalty for direct shipping without a permit and extends the direct-shipping provisions until January 1, 2027.
The bill’s legislative history indicates broad bipartisan support and little visible opposition. Committee and floor votes were overwhelmingly favorable, with multiple unanimous votes and only one recorded no vote on concurrence. No committee transcript opposition was provided, and the bill ultimately became chaptered, suggesting the measure was viewed as a modest, industry-friendly update to alcohol licensing and direct-shipping rules.
The principal policy tension is between expanding commercial opportunities for wineries and craft distillers and maintaining alcohol-control safeguards. Potential concerns include whether allowing more direct consumer sales and out-of-state direct shipping could complicate enforcement, increase compliance burdens, or raise underage-delivery risks. The new permit requirement, audit authority, and misdemeanor penalty appear designed to address those concerns, while the temporary sunset on the direct-shipping provisions reflects some caution about making the expansion permanent without further review.