Three states have recently put forth legislation to change the minimum drinking age from 21 to 18. Last year a pair of bills introduced in the Minnesota legislature proposed lowering the legal drinking age to 18. In February, 2016 a bill was introduced in New Hampshire that would set the drinking age at 18. In California signatures are being collected to put a measure on the state's ballots that would lower the drink age there as well.

The drinking age in the United states was set at 21 in every state in 1984 when Congress required states to set that as the legal age in order to get  highway funding.

But, some see having the drinking age at 21 as a cause of a growing problem. Rep. Phyllis Kahn of Minnesota, who introduced the bills there, told the Pioneer Press that, “It’s a very good way to deal with the serious problem of binge drinking, particularly on college campuses.”

Representative Kahn also believes that a recent Supreme Court ruling could shield states from the federal penalties established in 1984. The Pioneer Press reports that Kahn thinks that the 2012 ruling on Medicaid expansion in the Affordable Care Act established that the federal government can’t threaten to withhold funding to force states to do something. That may mean that the 1984 law is now not enforceable.

Terrance Lynn, who is spearheading the drive in California says that changing the drinking age is also about equal rights. “18 year olds have nearly every burden and privilege of adults…except the right to drink alcohol. This is a misguided aberration from 1984 that should be corrected,” Lynn states on his website.

Are these moves in a positive direction? Could they spread to other states, like here in South Dakota? When a person is 18 they are able to enter into contracts, join the military, they've been driving for two years, they can get married and all of the other basic rights and responsibilities of an adult citizen. Is it time to reevaluate the drinking age?

(VIA)


See Also:

More From KXRB