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There’s Still A Chance: California’s 4am Last Call Legislation Effort Is Still Alive

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In 2016, California State Senator Scott Wiener introduced the LOCAL Act up in Sacramento, with the aim of giving local communities the ability (and choice) to regulate when establishments such as bars and restaurants would close, possibly upping the last call timing from 2am to 4am. Ultimately the bill failed to make it out of committee, although it received a lot of support and media attention before it was ultimately turned down.

But Wiener’s battle isn’t over just yet. He has now introduced the idea of a scaled-back “pilot” program version of the original LOCAL Act with the intention of focusing on a few statewide municipalities to gauge consumer interest and iron out any issues as they arise. And, as it goes, three of those chosen locations are in Southern California.

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The RAVE Act: What You Need To Know And Why It’s Still a Weight on Our Industry

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In the fight against illegal drugs in the United States, one of the most significant measures that was put forward in recent years is the Reducing Americans’ Vulnerability to Ecstasy (RAVE) Act. It is also quite a controversial piece of legislation, as the bill itself did not manage to pass Congress until it was retooled as the Illicit Drug Anti-Proliferation Act of 2003.

Even after the passage, if you can call it that, the RAVE Act has been eliciting strong reactions from both sides of the spectrum until today. In particular, the sentiments against it have been strong and vocal as it is being criticized for its ineffectiveness in the illegal drug campaign, oftentimes touted as one of the causes for the lack of drug safety in today’s electronic music scene.

So what has made the RAVE Act a contentious law? Today, we look more closely at the RAVE Act, its provisions and the controversies surrounding it.

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California Nightlife Could Be Changing Soon If Last Call Law Is Approved

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The State of California is considering a law that may eventually allow alcohol last call to be pushed to 4am, a change that could revolutionize the whole spectrum of nightlife in the entire state if approved.

Nightclubs throughout California, and especially so in larger cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego, are currently suffering from a state-wide law that mandates that all venues must stop selling alcohol at 2am. This essentially means that by 1:45am most bars are closing out all open tabs and rightly refusing to serve anymore, causing party-goers to rush around nightclubs ahead of cut-off time to get their last drink in. The current state of affairs is also directly responsible for the programming of set times, with headliners often playing sets near 12-1am in order to hit peak-time with the crowd still in attendance and drinking alcohol. Why? Often-times the crowd simply thins out past 2am for obvious reasons.

The Let Our Communities Adjust Late Night Act, which was proposed on February 14, proposes that the decision on last call should be the responsibility of each municipality, possibly allowing major nightlife hubs such as San Francisco or Los Angeles to continue serving until 4am.

“California currently has a one-size-fits-all 2 am end to alcohol service, regardless of circumstances,” State Senator Scott Wiener stated on a Facebook post. “Nightlife matters a lot, culturally and economically, and it’s time to allow local communities more flexibility.”

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