A bill recently passed in Michigan demonstrates state lawmakers taking a different approach to curbing underage drinking. The new bill makes it tougher for restaurants and stores to sell to minors. Taking this new angle likely will prove more successful than directly targeting minors because it gives businesses even more incentive to be cautious about who they sell alcohol to.
The bill, passed in the House by a unanimous 109-0 vote, extends the time frame when businesses face getting their liquor license revoked after selling to a minor. Previously, businesses’ violations returned to zero at the beginning of every year, but now the time frame will operate on a rolling-year basis from the time of the first violation.
If the bill is passed by Gov. Rick Snyder, restaurants and businesses will now be held more accountable after violating the drinking age and selling to minors. Many people under the age of 21 engage in consumption of alcoholic beverages, and rather than threatening them, lawmakers are aiming to hold businesses responsible.
It is an interesting way to handle the situation. Many minors have received minor in possession, or MIP, charges, and it seems as if those charges haven’t slowed down anyone’s drinking habits.
Threatening businesses, on the other hand, likely will be a much more effective way of addressing the issue. Warning a business that it will have its liquor license taken away if it racks up three underage sale violations will get through to owners more than an MIP will get through to an underage drinker.
Underage drinking is very common, especially in college towns such as East Lansing. For students, MIP’s usually mean fines and probation time, which they can handle. However, getting a liquor license revoked can cause a business to lose a lot of money.
This recent bill, along with the recent keg law that requires a tag with the buyer’s information to be attached to the keg, lawmakers are showing they take underage drinking very seriously.
Under this new bill, businesses will not be held accountable for being fooled by legitimate-looking fake IDs. It is a fair part to the bill, seeing that fake IDs continue to grow more and more sophisticated. Some minors pay a lot of money to get legitimate fake IDs, and others borrow IDs from family members or similar-looking friends who are 21.
Many times, fake IDs are so realistic that clerks, bartenders or waiters cannot tell the difference between a fake and a real one. It would not be fair to punish businesses for minors who use legitimate-looking fake IDs to buy alcoholic beverages. Operators should continue to be watchful when checking IDs, but sometimes they simply are fooled, and it’s reasonable to not punish businesses for honest mistakes.
It is encouraging to see legislators go beyond demonizing young people, acknowledging the problem of underage drinking from the business side. Underage drinking undoubtably is a problem; but by punishing businesses rather than minors, lawmakers might be able to curb the problem from a different angle.
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