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Beauty Salons Illegally Offering Alcohol Hope To Be Law Abiding

LAFAYETTE (CBS SF) -- For many, going to the salon can be a good excuse to relax, even more so with a glass of wine.

A state bill approved by the assembly last year would make it easier for salons to provide free booze to customers. But some people are urging the governor to veto it.

When Kara Davidson and Samer Alami opened their Eighteen Eight Fine Men's Salons in Lafayette four years ago, they did what a lot of shops do, offered their customers a glass of wine or beer while they were getting their hair cut.

Davidson said, "Maybe it's more of a spa-like experience...they want to enjoy themselves and have a good time."

But they say they stopped pouring when they found out they were required to have a liquor license.  Now, they're hoping AB 1322 will allow the good times to flow again.

The bill has been passed by the Legislature and is now on Governor Jerry Brown's desk. It would allow barber shops and beauty salons to serve a free 6-ounce glass of wine or 12-ounce beer to their customers.

But not everyone thinks that's a good idea. A protest outside Eighteen Eight last week was sponsored by a group called Alcohol Justice, headed by Bruce Livingston of San Francisco.

Livingston said, "There's no license required so Alcohol Beverage Control agency is not going to do any monitoring or enforcement of this bill."

Livingston says society suffers plenty of problems from alcohol and the bill would open a wave of new, unregulated places where you can get it.

"We already have 90,000 licenses for alcohol in California. This creates 42,000 new places that serve alcohol. It's just too much," Livingston said.

But the salon owners say most operators don't realize they're doing anything wrong.

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