SACRAMENTO – bill requiring popular malt liquor beverages to include labels announcing their alcohol content has moved to the State Senate.

Assembly Bill 346, jointly authored by Assembly Members Lori Saldaña (D-San Diego) and Jim Beall, Jr. (D-San Jose) would require manufacturers to apply a clearly discernable label or sticker to these beverages marked “Warning: Contains Alcohol”, as well as information about the product’s alcoholic content.

“Many of these products are indistinguishable in color and packaging from sports or energy drinks,” Saldaña said “We believe they should be clearly marked so parents, retailers, underage consumers and law enforcement officials know that they are alcoholic beverages and amount of liquor they contain.”

Flavored malt beverages, also known as “Alcopops,” “Girlie Drinks,” “Cheerleader Beer” or “Gateway Drinks,” are concoctions of distilled liquor and fruity flavoring which come in vibrant colors and deceptive packaging attractive to younger consumers, particularly young women.

A survey conducted by the American Medical Association reported that a third of girls over 12 have tried alcopops, and 25 percent drove a car after drinking or rode with a driver who had been, and one in six reports being sexually active after drinking.

Anheuser-Busch’s recently removed its alcoholic energy drink “Spykes” from retail and internet availability after receiving a letter from 29 states attorneys general criticizing their marketing and advertising practices apparently aimed at the youth market.

Although they contain hard liquor, alcopops have been regulated by California’s Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC) as if they were beer and wine due to the industry’s creative formula of starting with a malt base and reducing it to nearly water before adding distilled flavoring.

The California Board of Equalization (BOE) is currently involved in the rule-making process to consider the option of taxing them at a rate more appropriate for distilled liquor.  The BOE expects this item to come before their five-member Board in late July.