Directs persons licensed for on-premises consumption of alcoholic beverages to have a criminal background history check performed on prospective bouncers; defines the term "bouncer"; provides for the establishment and certification of bouncer training programs by the state liquor authority; requires certain bouncers to be so certified and provides incentives to the employers of persons not required to be so certified but do receive such certification; excludes bouncers from the definition of security guards for purposes of the licensing of such guards pursuant to the executive law.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A5895
SPONSOR: Ortiz TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the alcoholic beverage control law and
the general business law, in relation to criminal history information
for persons employed as bouncers at retail licensed premises for
on-premises consumption and directing the state liquor authority to
establish a certification program for bouncers
PURPOSE OF BILL: This bill clarifies the Alcoholic Beverage Control
Law and the general Business Law by defining who is a "bouncer", estab-
lishes the requirements, and a class, to become a certified "bouncer",
and sets out when a certified "bouncer" is required and establishes an
incentive for premises that utilize certified "bouncers" when they are
not required by law to do so.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS: Section 1 amends Section 3 of the Alcoholic
Beverage Control Law to define "bouncer" as a person employed by an
on-premises retail licensee where the principal 'basis for such person's
employment is' to keep the general peace upon the licensed premises of
such licensee. The section further exempts certain people from "bouncer"
classification. This section also defines "criminal history information"
as it relates to background checks for bouncers.
Section 2 amends Section 106 of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law to
require that all retail licensees for on-premises consumption licensed
Pursuant to section sixty-four-d of this chapter and all other retail
licenses for on premises consumption with a capacity of two hundred
fifty persons or more that employ one or. more bouncers shall require a
criminal background check of prospective bouncers and establishes the
criteria for doing so.
Section 3 amends Section 17 of the alcoholic beverage control law to
prepare and disseminate information to advise licensees licensed for
on-premise consumption of the requirement for certain licensees to
obtain to criminal history information of a prospective bouncer pursuant
to subdivision sixteen of section one hundred six of this chapter.
Section 4 amends Section 17 of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law to
require the State Liquor Authority to notify licensees licensed for
on-premises consumption of the requirement for certain licensees to
obtain criminal history information of a prospective bouncer and the
requirements to obtain such criminal history information. This section
also requires the State Liquor Authority to develop and establish mini-
mum criteria for bouncer training programs and the guidelines for admin-
istering such programs. This section concludes by requiring all retail
licensees for on-premises consumption licensed pursuant to section
sixty-four-d of this chapter and all other retail licenses fog on-prem-
ises consumption with a capacity of two hundred fifty persons or more
that employ one of more bouncers require said bouncers to obtain a
certificate of completion from a bouncer training program, holding a
certificate of approval within thirty days of employment as a bouncer.
Section 5 establishes an incentive, which limits the fine for a proceed-
ing pursuant to section one hundred eighteen of this article, if the
licensee has not had any adjudicated violations within the last five
years, if all bouncers present at the time of the violation, employed by
the licensee's premises where the violation occurred were certified
bouncers.
Section 6 amends the General Business Law to exempt bouncers and licen-
sees for the on-premises consumption of alcoholic beverages from being
classified as "security guards" or as a "security guard Company".
Section 7 sets the effective date of this act as the one hundred twenti-
eth day after it has become a law.
JUSTIFICATION: The New York State Legislature enacted legislation in
1992 requiring all security guards to be registered, complete required
training, and submit to a criminal background check. Despite amendments
to the law enacted in 1994, the Department of State has interpreted this
law to apply to employees of restaurants, taverns and fraternal organ-
izations who check patrons to ensure they're not underage or intoxicated
- a basic responsibility of all alcohol beverage licensees - placing a
substantial burden on thousands of small business owners throughout the
State who were never intended to be the subject of the security Guard
law.
Recently, the Department of State proposed new regulations seeking to
place in the agency's formal rules their position that includes in the
definition of security guards, individuals employed in restaurants and
taverns that as any part of their job perform those functions, adding
tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of waiters, waitresses,
bartenders and other service personnel. No changes have been made to
make the training useful for those employees in the food and beverage
industry.
This bill clarifies that the security guard act does not apply to
on-premise alcohol beverage licensed establishments and establishes in
the alcohol beverage control law standards and criteria for bouncer
training and criminal background checks. It provides a clear definition
of a bouncer under the law and under what circumstances a bouncer is
required to participate in training and subject to a criminal background
check. These provisions will result in a training program that is more
focused on the duties of a bouncer rather than a security guard.
By requiring bouncers in establishments with a capacity for 250 people
or more to be subject to the training and criminal background checks,
the burden of the law is placed on those establishments with the great-
est potential impact on the public safety while not saddling small busi-
ness miners unnecessarily. The provisions creating an incentive for
establishments with a capacity of less than 250 people to voluntarily
subject their employees to the training and criminal background check
program will increase the number of businesses in the program and
expand, the benefits to the public.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: 2011/12 - A7953 - Ref to Economic Development
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: Unknown.
EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take place on the one hundred twentieth
day after it has become a law.
