Senate Bill S5652

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S5652

 TITLE OF BILL :
An act to amend chapter 519 of the laws of 1999, amending the
alcoholic beverage control law and the public health law relating to
the sale of alcohol and tobacco products to minors, in relation to
extending the provisions of such chapter


 PURPOSE :
This bill would extend certain provisions of law until January 1, 2012
that relate to deterring the sale of alcohol and tobacco products to
minors until January 1, 2012.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :
§ 1- Extend until January 1, 2012 the provisions of section 4 of
Chapter 519 of the Laws of 1999, as amended by Chapter 594 of the Laws
of 2007.

§ 2- This act shall take effect immediately.

 EXISTING LAW :
Alcoholic Beverage Control Law (ABCL) §65-b and Public Health Law
(PHL) § 1399-cc were amended by Chapter 519 of the Laws of 1999 to
create a voluntary procedure allowing merchants to utilize driver's
license scanning devices to reduce minors' access to alcohol and
              

tobacco products.

 JUSTIFICATION :
New York has enacted a series of strong laws designed to reduce access
by minors to alcohol by anyone under age 21 and tobacco to anyone
under age 18. Chapter 519 of the Laws of 1999 provided a voluntary
procedure by which retailers, restaurants, bars, clubs and other
places of entertainment could utilize the latest automated scanning
technology to verify the ages of their alcohol and tobacco purchasers,
thereby reducing access to these products by minors.

Automated scanners or age and identity verification devices provide
merchants with an affordable and reliable system of verification.
Chapter 519 of the Laws of 1999 supplemented and strengthened existing
law by adding unconditional loss of driving privileges as an
additional penalty for minors who purchase or attempt to purchase
alcoholic beverages or tobacco products. Chapter 519 also provided an
additional affirmative defense to retail establishments that engage in
the voluntary use of bar code and magnetic strip scanners. While
Chapter 519 in no way relieved a merchant or his or her agent from
their duty to use reasonable diligence in conducting a sale of tobacco
and alcohol products, it did provide a means for a merchant to limit
the human fallibility and shortcomings of his or her employees.
Chapter 519 recognized the need to strictly protect patrons' privacy,
and prohibits the sale or dissemination of any information obtained
during the use of this bar code verification system.

Extending the provisions of this law will permit merchants to continue
to make use of this technology in their efforts to ensure they are not
selling alcohol and tobacco to under-aged customers. The continued use
of scanners reduces the potential for store clerks to mistakenly sell
alcohol or tobacco products to an under-aged customer.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :
The State Legislature and Governor have extended the provisions of
statute since 1999.

 BUDGET IMPLICATIONS :
None.

Chapter 519 of the Laws of 1999 created a wholly voluntary program.
Only those merchants who wish to participate ill incur the cost of
installing and operating the scanning systems.

There will be no costs to the state or any local government.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This bill shall take effect immediately.