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Responsible Beverage Service (RBS) Training Program

Responsible Beverage Service training educates persons seeking employment or who are currently employed as servers of alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption. It aims to provide servers the necessary skills to responsibly serve alcoholic beverages and mitigate alcohol-related harm in California communities.

Mandatory RBS Training Deadline: 8/31/22!

Beginning 7/1/22, any on-premise alcohol server and manager must be certified by an accredited RBS training provider and pass an ABC exam within 60 calendar days from the first date of employment. The current exam is in English and Spanish. Exams will soon be offered in Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Hindi and Punjabi.

RBS Portal

What is the RBS Training Program?

Passage of Assembly Bill 1221 in 2017 created the Responsible Beverage Service Training Program 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 alcohol servers and managers of alcohol servers at an estimated 56,000 ABC licensees with on-premises alcohol sales privileges. The alcohol servers and  managers who work at those locations must register with the ABC, be trained, pass an exam, and be certified by August 31, 2022, or 60 days after their first date of employment. The passing of Assembly Bill 82, on June 29, 2020, extended the date in which this requirement is enacted to beginning July 1, 2022. This change was made to alleviate the financial strain on the hospitality industry caused by the COVID-19 state of emergency.

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.

Approved Training Provider Disclaimer: The Department has certified that the curricula presented by the approved training providers meets the requirements set forth in the California Code of Regulations Title 4 §§162-166. The Department’s review is limited to the content required by the aforementioned regulations, therefore, the Department cannot confirm the accuracy of any non-regulated content. If you have questions about the accuracy of the information provided by one of the training providers, or object to the manner in which the information was presented, please contact the training provider. Approved training providers are not employees of the Department or otherwise affiliated with the Department.

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

Contact

For server registration assistance contact your local district office:

- OR -

Bakersfield

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4800 Stockdale Highway., Suite 213
Bakersfield CA, 93309

Phone:
(661) 395-2731
Fax:
(661) 322-5929
Email:
Bakersfield@abc.ca.gov

Concord

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1800 Sutter St., Ste 450
Concord CA , 94520

Phone:
(925) 655-6314
Fax:
(925) 655-6310
Email:
Concord@abc.ca.gov

Eureka

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1105 Sixth St., Suite C
Eureka CA, 95501

Phone:
(707) 445-7229
Fax:
(707) 445-6643
Email:
Eureka@abc.ca.gov

Fresno

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1330 B East Shaw Ave.
Fresno CA, 93710-7902

Phone:
(559) 225-6334
Fax:
(559) 225-8740
Email:
Fresno@abc.ca.gov

LA/Metro

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888 S Figueroa Street, Suite 320
Los Angeles CA, 90017

Phone:
(213) 833-6043
Fax:
(213) 833-6058
Email:
LAMetro@abc.ca.gov

LB/Lakewood

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3950 Paramount Blvd., Suite 250
Lakewood CA, 90712

Phone:
(562) 982-1337
Fax:
(562) 982-1396
Email:
LongBeach/Lakewood@abc.ca.gov

Monrovia

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222 E. Huntington Dr., Suite 114
Monrovia CA, 91016

Phone:
(626) 256-3241
Fax:
(626) 263-9858
Email:
Monrovia@abc.ca.gov

Palm Desert

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34-160 Gateway Dr., Suite 120
Palm Desert CA, 92211

Phone:
(760) 324-2027
Fax:
(760) 324-2632
Email:
PalmDesert@abc.ca.gov

Redding

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1900 Churn Creek Rd., Suite 215
Redding CA, 96002

Phone:
(530) 224-4830
Fax:
(530) 224-9338
Email:
Redding@abc.ca.gov

Riverside

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3737 Main Street, Suite 900
Riverside CA, 92501

Phone:
(951) 782-4400
Fax:
(951) 781-0531
Email:
Riverside@abc.ca.gov

Sacramento

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2400 Del Paso Road, Suite 155
Sacramento CA, 95834

Phone:
(916) 419-1319
Fax:
(916) 419-3994
Email:
Sacramento@abc.ca.gov

Salinas

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1137 Westridge Parkway
Salinas CA, 93907

Phone:
(831) 755-1990
Fax:
(831) 755-1997
Email:
Salinas@abc.ca.gov

San Diego

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1350 Front St., Room 5056
San Diego CA, 92101

Phone:
(619) 525-4064
Fax:
(619) 231-1171
Email:
SanDiego@abc.ca.gov

San Francisco

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33 New Montgomery St., Suite 1230
San Francisco CA, 94105

Phone:
(415) 356-6500
(415) 356-6501
(415) 356-6502
(415) 356-6503
Fax:
(415) 356-6599
Email:
SanFrancisco@abc.ca.gov

San Jose

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100 Paseo de San Antonio, Room 119
San Jose CA, 95113

Phone:
(408) 277-1200
Fax:
(408) 971-9421
Email:
SanJose@abc.ca.gov

San Luis Obispo

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3220 S. Higuera St., Suite 103A
San Luis Obispo CA, 93401

Phone:
(805) 543-7183
Fax:
(805) 543-3814
Email:
SanLuisObispo@abc.ca.gov

San Marcos

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570 Rancheros Drive, Suite 240
San Marcos CA, 92069

Phone:
(760) 471-4237
Fax:
(760) 471-6142
Email:
SanMarcos@abc.ca.gov

Santa Ana

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2 MacAurthur Place, Suite 200
Santa Ana CA, 92707

Phone:
(657) 205-3533
Fax:
(657) 205-3520
Email:
SantaAna@abc.ca.gov

Santa Rosa

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50 D Street, Room 130
Santa Rosa CA, 95404

Phone:
(707) 576-2165
Fax:
(707)527-9537
Email:
SantaRosa@abc.ca.gov

Stockton

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31 E. Channel St., Room 168
Stockton CA, 95202

Phone:
(209) 948-7739
Fax:
(209) 546-7853
Email:
Stockton@abc.ca.gov

Van Nuys

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6150 Van Nuys Blvd., Room 220
Van Nuys CA, 91401

Phone:
(818) 901-5017
Fax:
(818) 785-6731
Email:
VanNuys@abc.ca.gov

Ventura

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1000 South Hill Road, Suite 310
Ventura CA, 93003

Phone:
(805) 289-0100
Fax:
(805) 289-0110
Email:
Ventura@abc.ca.gov

For training provider and general program assistance contact:

RBSTP Team
3927 Lennane Drive, Suite 100
Sacramento, CA 95834
Email: rbstp@abc.ca.gov

Hablamos Español

RBS Portal

Frequently Asked Questions

As an on-premises licensee, what are the important dates that I need to know to be in compliance with the new law?

ABC approved RBS training and certification will be mandatory for alcohol servers and their managers beginning July 1, 2022.

ABC On-Premises Licensees have sixty (60) days from July 1, 2022 to have their staff trained and certified by an approved RBS training provider. This includes the successful completion of an ABC administered RBS exam.

 

Where can I find approved RBS training providers?

As of Monday, March 29, 2021, ABC will begin approving AB 1221 compliant RBS training courses from a variety of approved RBS training providers. The Department will be adding additional training provider courses as they are approved. Servers may search for approved RBS training providers via the RBS Portal.

What is the cost of the RBS Exam?

The cost of the exam is $3.00; it is included as part of the alcohol server’s registration into the RBS portal. Once training has been confirmed by the training provider, exam access will be granted, and the alcohol server will have three attempts to pass the exam with a 70% or better before having to retake the training and paying $3.00 for the exam. The exam is currently offered in English and Spanish.

How do I get a copy of my RBS certification?

We will not be issuing physical or downloadable RBS certificates. Upon completion of training and the certification exam, the alcohol server will be issued a certification number which is valid for three years. The alcohol server certification number is recorded on the Alcohol Server’s Dashboard in the training history at the bottom of the page of the RBS Portal. Licensees will be able to verify that their servers are RBS certified using the (certification number and the server’s name) as we get closer to the legal requirement for the mandatory statewide training.

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