republic-os/legislation/us/states/ca/20112012/ab-45.md

---
type: "Bill"
title: "Charter-party carriers of passengers: alcoholic beverages: open containers."
description: "The Passenger Charter-party Carriers' Act, with certain exceptions, prohibits a charter-party carrier of passengers from engaging in transportation services subject to regulation by the Public Utilities Commission without obtaining a specified certificate or permit, as appropriate, from the commission. The act, except as specified, requires the driver of any limousine for hire operated by a charter-party carrier of passengers (carrier) under a valid certificate or permit to comply with prescribed requirements relating to alcoholic beverages, including ascertaining whether any passenger is under the age of 21 years, reading to the passenger a statement that the consumption of any alcoholic beverage in the vehicle is unlawful, requiring such a passenger to sign the statement, and, if a minor passenger, after signing the statement, is found to be, or to have been, consuming any alcoholic beverage during the course of the ride, immediately terminating the contract of hire and returning the passenger to the point of origin. The act also subjects the carrier to specified civil penalties, based on the number of offenses, for conviction of a driver, or any officer, director, agent, or employee of the carrier, of a violation of the Vehicle Code that prohibits storage of an opened container of an alcoholic beverage in a motor vehicle."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ca"
legislature: "California Legislature"
session: "20112012"
identifier: "AB 45"
citation: "California AB 45 (20112012)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Charter-party carriers of passengers: alcoholic beverages: open containers."]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Hill"]
version_count: 11
action_count: 34
vote_count: 8
first_action: "2010-12-06"
last_action: "2012-09-23"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/61b59ed8-fd0e-48eb-b447-40d7781aff7c"
source_url: "http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB45"
source_hash: "6b1866971a5f0ffd75fb20a78214d7af783bc19820742c0123131e35e78f0c20"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-ca"]
---

# California AB 45 (20112012) — Charter-party carriers of passengers: alcoholic beverages: open containers.

The Passenger Charter-party Carriers' Act, with certain exceptions, prohibits a charter-party carrier of passengers from engaging in transportation services subject to regulation by the Public Utilities Commission without obtaining a specified certificate or permit, as appropriate, from the commission. The act, except as specified, requires the driver of any limousine for hire operated by a charter-party carrier of passengers (carrier) under a valid certificate or permit to comply with prescribed requirements relating to alcoholic beverages, including ascertaining whether any passenger is under the age of 21 years, reading to the passenger a statement that the consumption of any alcoholic beverage in the vehicle is unlawful, requiring such a passenger to sign the statement, and, if a minor passenger, after signing the statement, is found to be, or to have been, consuming any alcoholic beverage during the course of the ride, immediately terminating the contract of hire and returning the passenger to the point of origin. The act also subjects the carrier to specified civil penalties, based on the number of offenses, for conviction of a driver, or any officer, director, agent, or employee of the carrier, of a violation of the Vehicle Code that prohibits storage of an opened container of an alcoholic beverage in a motor vehicle.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **12/06/10 - Introduced** (filed) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB45&version=20110AB4599INT)
2. **03/29/11 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB45&version=20110AB4598AMD)
3. **04/11/11 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB45&version=20110AB4597AMD)
4. **05/09/11 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB45&version=20110AB4596AMD)
5. **06/07/12 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB45&version=20110AB4594AMD)
6. **06/14/11 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB45&version=20110AB4595AMD)
7. **08/06/12 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB45&version=20110AB4593AMD)
8. **08/24/12 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB45&version=20110AB4592AMD)
9. **09/23/12 - Chaptered** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB45&version=20110AB4590CHP)
10. **AB45** (committee substitute) — [source](http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB45)
11. **09/11/12 - Enrolled** (enrolled) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB45&version=20110AB4591ENR)

## Votes

- Do pass, but re-refer to the Committee on Public Safety. — **7–1** (pass) · upper
- Do pass as amended, to Consent Calendar. — **17–0** (pass) · lower
- Do pass as amended, and re-refer to the Committee on Appropriations. — **4–0** (pass) · upper
- 3rd Reading AB45 Hill By Leno — **31–0** (pass) · upper
- Do pass as amended and be re-referred to the Committee on Appropriations. — **15–0** (pass) · lower
- Do pass. — **7–0** (pass) · upper
- AB 45 HILL Consent Calendar Second Day — **70–0** (pass) · lower
- AB 45 HILL Concurrence in Senate Amendments — **79–0** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- Hill — primary (person)
- Alquist — coauthor (person)
- Lieu — coauthor (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2010-12-06** Read first time. To print. `reading-1`
- **2010-12-07** From printer. May be heard in committee January 6.
- **2011-02-10** Referred to Com. on U. & C. `referral-committee`
- **2011-03-29** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on U. & C. Read second time and amended. `reading-2, amendment-introduction, reading-1, amendment-passage`
- **2011-03-30** Re-referred to Com. on U. & C. `referral-committee`
- **2011-04-07** From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 15. Noes 0.) (April 4). `amendment-passage, committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2011-04-11** Read second time and amended. `reading-2, reading-1, amendment-passage`
- **2011-04-12** Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `referral-committee`
- **2011-05-05** From committee: Do pass as amended. To consent calendar. (Ayes 17. Noes 0.) (May 4). `amendment-passage, committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2011-05-09** Read second time and amended. Ordered to second reading. `reading-2, reading-1, amendment-passage`
- **2011-05-10** Read second time. Ordered to consent calendar. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **2011-05-12** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 70. Noes 0. Page 1357.) `reading-3, reading-1, passage`
- **2011-05-12** In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. `reading-1`
- **2011-05-26** Referred to Coms. on E., U., & C. and PUB. S. `referral-committee`
- **2011-06-14** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on E., U., & C. `reading-2, amendment-introduction, reading-1, amendment-passage, referral-committee`
- **2011-06-21** From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on PUB. S. (Ayes 7. Noes 1.) (June 21). Re-referred to Com. on PUB. S. `referral-committee, committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2011-06-29** In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.
- **2012-06-07** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on PUB. S. `reading-2, amendment-introduction, reading-1, amendment-passage, referral-committee`
- **2012-06-12** Withdrawn from committee.
- **2012-06-12** Re-referred to Com. on RLS. `referral-committee`
- **2012-06-14** Re-referred to Com. on JUD. `referral-committee`
- **2012-08-06** From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 4. Noes 0.) (July 3). `amendment-passage, committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2012-08-06** Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `reading-2, reading-1, amendment-passage, referral-committee`
- **2012-08-07** From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (August 6). `committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2012-08-08** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **2012-08-24** Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading. `reading-3, reading-1, amendment-passage`
- **2012-08-27** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **2012-08-29** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 31. Noes 0. Page 4932.). `reading-3, reading-1, passage`
- **2012-08-29** In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending. May be considered on or after August 31 pursuant to Assembly Rule 77.
- **2012-08-30** Assembly Rule 77 suspended. (Page 6605.)
- **2012-08-30** Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 79. Noes 0. Page 6618.). `committee-passage-favorable, amendment-passage`
- **2012-09-12** Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4:40 p.m.
- **2012-09-23** Approved by the Governor. `executive-signature`
- **2012-09-23** Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 461, Statutes of 2012.

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/61b59ed8-fd0e-48eb-b447-40d7781aff7c`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official California legislature records).