California bars now required to offer kits to test for date rape drugs

Thousands of California bars and nightclubs will now be required to offer drug test kits and put up signage to cut down on the use of date rape drugs, under a new law that took effect on Monday.

Assembly Bill 1013 requires approximately 2,400 establishments across the state with licenses to sell beer, wine, and spirits to take the new measures.

“Drug testing devices could include test strips, stickers, straws or other devices that can detect the presence of controlled substances in drinks,” according to the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. “These substances could include flunitrazepam, ketamine, and gamma hydroxybutyric acid.”

The law passed unanimously this year and was authored by Josh Lowenthal, a Democrat from Long Beach who is also a bar and restaurant owner. He said he hoped the new measures would cut down on the use of “roofies” and other date rape drugs at nightlife businesses.

“The under-reported epidemic of drink spiking or roofying continues to plague California and the world,” he wrote in a news release about the law.

“Although drink spiking can occur in almost any setting, it is more common in bars and nightclubs that serve alcoholic beverages.”

In addition to the test kits, which are to be offered free or at reasonable cost, bars must also post signage reading, “Don’t get roofied! Drink spiking drug test kits available here. Ask a staff member for details.”

Julie Kazmi, the owner of a bar in Pacific Beach, California, and a survivor of a roofying attempt told NBC San Diego she supported bars having test kits but found the language of the signage to be triggering.

“The verbiage on the sign really triggered me, and I have to, by law, hang that in my bar,” she said. “As a 51-year-old woman, for me to see that and feel triggered, how is that going to make other women feel?”

The law expires on January 1, 2027.