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Sponsor Statement for HB 201
Alcohol Server May Not Consume

An Act prohibiting certain persons who sell or serve alcohol from consuming alcoholic beverages during hours of employment.

In recent years, Alaska has seen an escalation in drunk driving related accidents. There have been task force meetings, public hearings, introduction of legislation, press releases, and public outcry to stop the devastation that drunk driving causes in our state.

House Bill 201 is a small step in the right direction. Bartenders are responsible for not serving alcohol to someone they believe is drunk. If the bartender is drinking while working, they cannot be expected to responsibly determine if someone else has had too much to drink. Medical research has concluded that the more alcohol a person consumes, the slower their reaction time, and the less clearly they can make decisions.

The focus of HB 201 is to stop alcohol servers from drinking on the job. There is an exception in the bill that allows a person to provide beer or wine tasting as part of their job. This bill is not meant to infringe upon the upstanding establishments in our state that have good in house policies that prohibit drinking alcohol during work hours.

HB 201 alone will not solve the current problems of alcoholism and drunk driving in Alaska. It will however, add to our preventative measures.

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