California bar and club patrons, get ready to pencil in a daily siesta into your routine. The state senate passed a bill today introduced by Sen. Scott Wiener (D- San Francisco) which allows California bars and clubs to stay open as late as 4 AM.
This is the farthest this bill has ever gotten and still awaits clearance from the state Assembly, but it’s a major accomplishment for the nightlife industry. Wiener introduced the Let Our Communities Adjust Late Night Act (LOCAL) in efforts to promote safer late night environments across California.
According to the LA Times, “Wiener and the bill’s supporters (which include Republican and Democratic state senators and assembly members) argue that extended service hours would make it more financially viable to operate fully-inspected and permitted music venue.” This comes after the fact of such tragedies like the Ghost Ship warehouse incident in Oakland last year where dozens of young artists and music lovers were killed.
Late-night events in California tend to exceed the 2 AM call hour and lead into unregulated parties, the reason why this bill’s key aspect is to safeguard the public in accordance with the new standard of time. Of course, this is up to each community’s own discretion. The bill wasn’t created to heighten one’s drinking habits; rather, it’s to reinforce optimal safety at events and bars, create more secure neighborhood environments for the late hours and keep up with the rising costs of California business in general.
The bill hasn’t quite hit 100% approval, but this can still be seen as a major advancement towards substantial financial and safety improvement for all those involved in the nightlife industry.
More updates on the LOCAL bill to come.
