California lawmakers quietly passed a bill Tuesday night that would loosen state law by allowing alcohol sales inside a club at the Los Angeles Clippers’ new arena until 4 a.m. The bill, AB 3206, would only allow alcohol sales in the early morning hours inside a small club at the new Intuit Dome arena in Inglewood. The club is expected to have a maximum capacity of 100 people in the 18,000-person arena. The Clippers are scheduled to begin playing in the new arena next NBA season. State law generally prohibits alcohol sales between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. Lawmakers in the state Senate debated the bill for about five minutes before approving it with the minimum number of votes needed 21-14, with five lawmakers abstaining from voting. In a statement Wednesday, the lawmaker who authored the bill, Assemblywoman Tina McKinnor, said, “AB 3206 is narrow in scope, includes many public health and safety protections, including approval by the Inglewood City Council, and will provide another entertainment option to complement the more than $2 billion in private investment in the recently opened Intuit Dome in Inglewood.” “The renaissance of Inglewood is well underway, and I thank my colleagues in the State Senate and Assembly for their support of the incredible growth happening in the City of Champions,” McKinnor said. “This is actually a very exclusive club inside a venue that is currently under construction that will only allow exclusive members to drink until 4 a.m.,” Republican Sen. Kelly Seyarto said during Senate debate. “If they think that opening up places and drinking until 4 a.m. is good for exclusive groups, then it should be good for everyone, and my contingent is that it’s not good for anyone.” The Los Angeles Clippers are owned by Steve Ballmer, the former CEO of Microsoft. State campaign finance data shows that Ballmer and the entity he owns, Murphy’s Bowl LLC, have not made political donations to individual members of the legislature since 2021. Connie Ballmer, Steve’s wife, contributed $1 million to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s campaign to fight his recall in 2021. The couple also contributed $500,000 to former state Senate leader Toni Atkins’ campaign committee for Proposition 1 in 2022, which enshrined abortion rights in the California constitution. KCRA 3 reached out to the Clippers organization for comment but did not hear back Wednesday night. The proposal now heads to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk. “Our office does not typically comment on pending legislation,” said Izzy Gardon, a spokeswoman for the governor. “The governor will evaluate the legislature’s proposal on its merits if it reaches his desk.” The measure still requires local government approval. If approved, the club’s special alcohol sales extension would last through 2030. See more coverage of California’s top stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter
California lawmakers quietly passed a bill Tuesday night that would relax state law by allowing alcohol sales inside a club at the Los Angeles Clippers’ future arena until 4 a.m.
The bill, AB 3206, would only allow alcohol sales in the early morning hours inside a small club at the new Intuit Dome arena in Inglewood. The club is expected to have a maximum capacity of 100 people in the 18,000-person arena. The Clippers are expected to begin playing in the new arena next NBA season.
State law generally prohibits the sale of alcohol between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m.
State Senate lawmakers debated the bill for about five minutes before passing it with the House’s approval. minimum number of votes required: 21 to 14, with five lawmakers abstaining from the vote.
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In a statement Wednesday, the lawmaker who authored the bill, Assemblywoman Tina McKinnor, said, “AB 3206 is narrow in scope, includes numerous safeguards to protect public health and safety, including approval by the Inglewood City Council, and will provide another entertainment option to complement the more than $2 billion in private investment in the recently opened Intuit Dome in Inglewood.”
“Inglewood’s renaissance is well underway, and I thank my colleagues in the State Senate and Assembly for their support of the incredible growth happening in the City of Champions,” McKinnor said.
“This is actually a very exclusive club in a venue that is under construction that will only allow its exclusive members to drink until 4 a.m.,” Republican Sen. Kelly Seyarto said during the Senate debate. “If they think that opening venues and allowing drinking until 4 a.m. is a good thing for exclusive groups, then it should be a good thing for everyone, and my contingent thinks that’s not a good thing for anyone.”
The Los Angeles Clippers are owned by Steve Ballmer, the former CEO of Microsoft. State campaign finance data shows that Ballmer and the entity he owns, Murphy’s Bowl LLC, have not made political donations to individual members of the legislature since 2021.
Steve’s wife, Connie Ballmer, contributed $1 million to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s campaign to challenge his recall in 2021. The couple also contributed $500,000 to former state Senate leader Toni Atkins’ campaign committee for Proposition 1 in 2022, which enshrined abortion rights in the California constitution.
KCRA 3 reached out to the Clippers organization for comment but did not hear back Wednesday night.
The proposal now goes to Governor Gavin Newsom’s desk.
“Our office does not typically comment on pending bills,” said Izzy Gardon, a spokeswoman for the governor. “The governor will evaluate the legislature’s proposal on its merits if it reaches his desk.”
The measure still requires approval from the local government.
If approved, the special extension of alcohol sales for the club would last until 2030.
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