By Duane Motley

Each year, there appears to be an increasing number of incidents where individuals under 21 years of age are provided large quantities of alcohol.

Current law states that anyone who purchases or somehow provides alcohol to someone less than 21 years of age is guilty of unlawful dealing with a child, which is a Class A Misdemeanor.

Senator Libous (R – Binghamton) introduced Senate bill S2146, making it a Class E Felony to provide large quantities of alcohol to someone under 21.  “Large quantities of alcohol” is defined in the bill as being 5 gallons of beer, 9 liters of wine, more than 5 gallons of wine products, or more than 3 liters of liquor.  The law does not apply to a parent who provides their underage child with alcohol, or to a person under age 21 who is a student in a curriculum licensed by the State Education Department, where testing or imbibing of alcoholic beverages is required for instructional purposes.

This legislation passed the Senate Codes Committee by a vote of 16 to 0.

S2146 passed the Senate unanimously, and it awaits action in the Assembly Codes Committee.  Assemblyman Weisenberg (D – Long Beach) sponsored the Assembly version of the bill, A506.