Responsible Beverage Service (RBS) Training

What is the RBS Training Program?

Passage of Assembly Bill 1221 in 2017 created the Responsible Beverage Service Training Act. The bill required the Alcoholic Beverage Control to create the Responsible Beverage Service Training Program (RBSTP) to ensure servers and their managers of alcoholic beverages are educated on the dangers of serving alcohol to minors and over-serving alcohol to patrons with the intention of reducing alcohol-related harm to local communities. The new mandate creates a new training requirement for an estimated 1,000,000 on-premises alcohol servers, their managers, and licensees beginning in 2021. ​The passing of Assembly Bill 82, on June 29, 2020, has extended the date in which this requirement is enacted to beginning in 2022. This change was made to alleviate the financial strain on the hospitality industry caused by the COVID-19 state of emergency.
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Beginning July 1, 2022, any alcohol server and their manager must have a valid RBS certification from an ABC accredited RBS training provider and pass an online ABC administered RBS exam within 60 calendar days from the first date of employment.

Mission of the Responsible Beverage Service Training Program  

Our mission is to ensure effective Responsible Beverage Service training for servers and their managers to curb harm related to underage drinking and the overuse of alcohol in California communities.

Additional Resources

• Approved RBS Regulations Documents
• Program Updates