On October 9, California Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill that will prohibit the sale of alcohol at self-checkout machines. The bill, AB 183, was authored by California Assembly Member Fiona Ma (D – San Francisco) in response to minors purchasing alcohol by using self-checkout lanes to avoid identification checks by retail clerks.

The bill was supported by the UFCW, along with Mothers Against Drunk Driving; Consumer Federation of California; California Council on Alcohol Problems; Lutheran Office of Public Policy – California; California Police Chiefs; Alcohol Justice; California Narcotic Officers’ Association; Metro United Methodist Urban Ministry; California’s police officers; and California Professional Firefighters.

Studies by UCLA and San Diego State University have shown that alcohol restrictions by self-service checkout systems failed as much as 10 percent of the time and that 32 percent of students purchasing alcohol through these systems were not asked to show identification. Other minors have found strategies to bypass age restrictions when a clerk is not present.

The new law will affect the British-owned Fresh & Easy grocery chain, a subsidiary of Tesco, which has a business model that combines self-checkout only with a heavy reliance on alcohol sales.