Alcoholic beverage control: neighborhood-restricted special on-sale general licenses.

Assembly Member Mark González's legislation creates a new category of alcohol licenses for restaurants in specific Los Angeles County neighborhoods, authorizing up to 40 neighborhood-restricted special on-sale general licenses to be issued over multiple years starting January 2026. The Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control may grant up to 12 new licenses annually to qualifying restaurants located within designated census tracts, with no more than 20 licenses permitted in each of three defined geographic zones.

The licenses include specific transfer and ownership restrictions. Recipients cannot sell or transfer licenses between counties or to other locations outside their designated neighborhood zone, except in cases of premises destroyed by natural disasters or other uncontrollable events. The licenses also cannot be sold for more than their original purchase price. Current or recent holders of on-sale general licenses for the same premises are ineligible to apply, and existing licenses must be canceled before a new restricted license can be issued.

While these special licenses carry the same basic privileges and requirements as standard on-sale general licenses for restaurants, they cannot be converted to public premises licenses. The bill authorizes the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control to implement necessary regulations and designate these as special use licenses without altering their core provisions. The Legislature's findings cite unique market conditions in Los Angeles County as justification for this targeted approach to license distribution.