Liquor store coverage behind the counter.

Selling to minors and the ID defense in B&P 25660

California Business and Professions Code 25658(a) makes it a misdemeanor for any person to sell, furnish or give alcohol to anyone under 21, or cause that to happen. Under 25658(e)(2), a person who furnishes alcohol to a minor faces a $1,000 fine, no part of which can be suspended, plus at least 24 hours of community service. The store's ABC license is exposed too. Under 25658.1, ABC may revoke a license for a third violation of 25658 within any 36-month period, a licensee cannot petition for an offer in compromise for a third or later violation within 36 months of the first, and only final violations count.

Section 25660 sets out the defense. It applies when the licensee or an employee or agent demanded, was shown and acted in reliance on bona fide evidence of majority and identity, or used a biometric system that verifies that evidence. Bona fide evidence means one of these:

• A government document issued by a federal, state, county or municipal government or agency, such as a valid driver's license, that contains the person's name, date of birth, description and picture.
• A valid passport issued by the United States or a foreign government.
• A valid Armed Forces ID card that includes a date of birth and a picture.

If age verification software or a device that scans the magnetic strip or barcode fails to catch a false ID, that failure is considered evidence in a criminal case or license proceeding, provided the ID was one of the documents above, was physically inspected, seemed legitimate and matched the customer's appearance.

Underwriters ask how you prevent sales to minors. A written ID policy, a scanner at each register and a signed training record for each clerk answer that. Other states set their own rules; the dram shop laws by state page covers seller liability elsewhere.

The workplace violence plan California requires

Since July 1, 2024, Labor Code 6401.9 has required California employers, with listed exemptions, to keep an effective written workplace violence prevention plan. Type 1 violence is violence by a person with no legitimate business at the worksite, including anyone who enters intending to commit a crime. Type 2 is violence directed at employees by customers or visitors. A late-night register sees both.

Exemptions include employees teleworking from a place of their choice and places with fewer than 10 employees at any given time that are not accessible to the public and comply with the Injury and Illness Prevention Program rule (8 CCR 3203). A store open to the public does not meet that second exemption. The law requires:

• A written plan available and easily accessible to employees at all times. It can be a stand-alone section of your Injury and Illness Prevention Program.
• Hazard procedures to identify, evaluate and correct hazards, with inspections when the plan starts, after each incident and when a new hazard surfaces, plus emergency response and post-incident investigation.
• Training when the plan is first set up and every year after, plus more when a new hazard is found or the plan changes.
• A violent incident log for every incident, recording the type, the circumstances (such as low staffing or poor lighting) and whether security or law enforcement was contacted, without names or other identifying details.
• Records: hazard records, incident logs and investigation records kept at least five years, training records at least one year.
• A plan review at least once a year, when a deficiency shows up and after any incident.

A finished plan and current log help on the application. Underwriters ask how clerks and cash are protected. See workers' comp and crime coverage.

Official sources

• California Business and Professions Code 25658
• California Business and Professions Code 25658.1
• California Business and Professions Code 25660
• 4 CCR 141, Minor Decoy Requirements (Cornell LII)
• California ABC: Disciplinary Guidelines
• California ABC: LEAD Training
• California Labor Code 6401.9
• CDTFA: Cigarette & Tobacco Products Licensing Act of 2003 FAQs, Retailers
• California Business and Professions Code 22956
• California Business and Professions Code 22958