A New Senate Bill Could Lower Drinking Age to 19 in Louisiana
Senator Eric LaFleur is sponsoring Senate Bill 429 and if it passes, 19 and 20 year old's would be allowed to purchase alcohol. Many people aren't bothered with the idea of a 19 year old purchasing alcohol. Chances are you know of several people who purchased alcohol at the age of 18 up until 1995. A state sales loophole was the reason many 18 year old's were still able to purchase alcohol in Louisiana. If you're wondering why on earth the drinking age was raised back in 1984 it's simple, better roads and highway funds. The National Minimum Drinking Age Act raised the legal drinking age to 21, in exchange for annual federal highway funds given to states. Louisiana held out and was the 50th state to jump on board.
In 1996 The Louisiana Supreme Court ruled that raising the drinking age to 21 was unconstitutional. The court was forced to reverse the decision because the fear of highway funds going away was starting to become a reality. Senate Bill 429 is hoping to avoid all these repercussions and Sen. Eric LaFleur claims that it will help avoid binge drinking. If passed the Bill would eliminate underage persons asking for help purchasing alcohol, it'd eliminate many fake I.D.'s at least in the state of Louisiana. The U.S. has a serious issue with fake I.D.'s, and underage drinking. Could Senate Bill 429 solve a lot of problems in Louisiana? What are your thoughts on it?