South Dakota’s House State Affairs Committee are scheduled to consider a bill (HB 1132) that would lower the drinking age to 18 for active duty service women and men, including those in the National Guard. Representative Tim Goodwin, a Republican...
Pop-upView Separately

South Dakota’s House State Affairs Committee are scheduled to consider a bill (HB 1132) that would lower the drinking age to 18 for active duty service women and men, including those in the National Guard.

Representative Tim Goodwin, a Republican from Rapid City, a military veteran and the bill’s sponsor, stated, “If somebody is going to join the military and fight for his country and possibly give up his life for his country, he should be considered an adult and should be able to have an adult beverage. It’s an insult that they have to wait until they’re 21.”

Governor Dennis Daugaard ® is concerned about the loss of federal funding tied to the National Drinking Age Act, which stipulates that states must set the minimum drinking age at 21 or the state will lose 8% of federal highway funding. Daugaard stated, “While we can choose to ignore that law, the consequence is that choice loses us about $300 million of national gas tax funding. That’s a lot of money.”

Currently, South Dakota law states that a person must be 21 to purchase and consume alcohol. However, anyone aged 18 to 20 may be sold alcohol if they are “in the immediate presence of a parent, guardian or spouse who is over the age of 21.” It is legal to refuse to sell alcohol to anyone under the age of 21. Selling alcohol to a person 18-20 years old who is not in the presence of a parent, guardian, or spouse who is of age is a Class 2 Misdemeanor. The penalty for the first offense is a maximum of 30 days in jail and a $200 fine for the licensee, up to a $1,000 fine for the business, and the clerk will have his or her driver’s license revoked for between 30 days and one year. 

 (via Lowering Drinking Age for Active Military up for Consideration in South Dakota - ProCon.org)

Source: procon.org

Minimum Legal Drinking Age of 21 Saves Lives, According to New Study

imageAccording to a meta-study published in the latest issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, the minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) of 21 reduces alcohol-related traffic crashes, alcohol consumption by youth, and long-term negative consequences in adulthood such as drug dependence, suicide, and homicide.

The study, “Case Closed: Research Evidence on the Positive Public Health Impact of the Age 21 Minimum Legal Drinking Age in the United States,” analyzed dozens of peer-reviewed journal articles that evaluated MLDA 21 in the United States or that investigated the potential effects of raising or lowering the MLDA.

The investigation came as a response to advocacy organization Choose Responsibility’s call in 2006 to repeal the National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984, which led all 50 states to establish MLDA 21 or risk losing millions of dollars in federal transportation funds. In 2008, the organization created the Amethyst Initiative, a group of college and university presidents advocating for a lower drinking age of 18. Public health and traffic safety experts responded with dozens of new research papers on MLDA’s effectiveness.

According to study authors William DeJong and Jason Blanchette, researchers at the Boston University School of Public Health and School of Medicine, MLDA 21 has “served the nation well by reducing alcohol-related traffic crashes and alcohol consumption among youths while also protecting drinkers from long-term negative outcomes they might experience in adulthood, including alcohol and other drug dependence, adverse birth outcomes, and suicide and homicide. The evidence is clear that, absent other policy changes and improved enforcement of the nation’s alcohol laws, lowering the legal drinking age would lead to a substantial increase in injuries, deaths, and other negative health-related consequences.”

Should the Drinking Age Be Lowered from 21 to a Younger Age?

Should the Drinking Age Be Lowered from 21 to a Younger Age?All 50 US states have set their minimum drinking age to 21 although exceptions do exist on a state-by-state basis for consumption at home, under adult supervision, for medical necessity, and other reasons.

Proponents of lowering the minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) from 21 argue that it has not stopped teen drinking, and has instead pushed underage binge drinking into private and less controlled environments, leading to more health and life-endangering behavior by teens.

Opponents of lowering the MLDA argue that teens have not yet reached an age where they can handle alcohol responsibly, and thus are more likely to harm or even kill themselves and others by drinking prior to 21. They contend that traffic fatalities decreased when the MLDA increased. Read more…

Should the drinking age be lowered from 21 to a younger age?

Should the drinking age be lowered from 21 to a younger age? All 50 US states have set their minimum drinking age to 21 although exceptions do exist on a state-by-state basis for consumption at home, under adult supervision, for medical necessity, and other reasons.

Proponents of lowering the minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) from 21 argue that it has not stopped teen drinking, and has instead pushed underage binge drinking into private and less controlled environments, leading to more health and life-endangering behavior by teens.

Opponents of lowering the MLDA argue that teens have not yet reached an age where they can handle alcohol responsibly, and thus are more likely to harm or even kill themselves and others by drinking prior to 21. They contend that traffic fatalities decreased when the MLDA increased. Read more…