(Sacramento, CA) -- Assemblymember Noreen Evans (D-Santa Rosa), Chair of the Assembly Select Committee on Wine, introduced legislation today to help non-profit organizations organize fundraising events involving wine donated from California’s wine industry.

“Wine is part of our culture in California,” said Evans.  “But current law puts obstacles between non-profits and our wine industry.  This bill will help non-profits cultivate stronger ties with an industry which has set a high standard for compassion.”

Assembly Bill (AB) 1964 increases from one to three the number of temporary alcohol licenses a non-profit can obtain each year from the Department of Alcoholic Beverages Control (ABC) to conduct wine dinner and wine auction fundraisers.  It also allows non-profit organizations to temporarily store wine for up to 60 days leading up to events for which a temporary alcohol license is pending if certain conditions are met.  In essence, the non-profit must stipulate in writing to the ABC that all donated wine will remain unopened and, if a pending license request is denied, all wines must be returned within 30 days.

“This bill will remove legal hurdles so that non-profits can raise the resources needed to do their important work,” added Evans.

Under current law, non-profit organizations must possess temporary alcohol license permits in order to organize any fundraising event involving wine.  Common fundraising models include the organization of wine auctions, wine dinners, and wine tastings.  However, non-profits cannot take into possession any wine donated for a specific fundraising event until they have received a temporary alcohol license.  And, winemakers cannot donate wine to a non-profit until it has a temporary alcohol license.  Typically, the processing of event licenses does not occur until a week or two before a given event.  This creates a logistical bottleneck for the non-profit which must then coordinate the collection of wine with winemakers who have previously pledged donations for an event.

Evans identified the issues addressed in AB 1964 last year through a series of public hearings with the non-profit community, the wine industry, and the ABC addressing the organization of fundraising events involving wine.

The California wine industry made over $115 million in charitable contributions in 2006, the most recent year for which data is available.