Renoun
Well-Known Member
There's an interesting analysis in The Volokh Conspiracy (a long-standing group of blogging lawyers with a libratarian bent recently affiliated with the Washington Post) titled Maines unwise and unconstitutional ban on disclosing the alcohol content of beers that might be of interest to HBT folks who don't normally read much legal analysis.
Not all beers are created equal. Some are much stronger than others. The proliferation of micro-breweries and craft beers has meant that consumers cannot know what theyre getting in a beer unless they check. The alcohol-by-volume content of some beers is more than double that found in a Budweiser and can be three-to-four times that found in an Amstel Light. Thankfully, its increasingly common for bars to list the alcohol content of beers unless theyre in Maine.
Maine has a decades-old law that prohibits advertising or otherwise promoting the alcohol content of beer. For a long time this law was unenforced. Yet as Jacob Sullum reports, the Maine Liquor and Lottery Commission is now enforcing the law and interpreting it to prohibit the disclosure of ABV-content on bar and restaurant menus. Sullum points to this story explaining that regulators fear disclosing the alcohol content of beers will encourage underage drinking and overserving. As you might expect, Maines brew pubs are not amused. Many consumers want information about the alcohol content in beers, often because they want to make sure they do not drink too much. Thus Maines policy could actually have the perverse effect of undermining public safety. A consumer who can safely handle two Bud Lights (4.2% ABV) might be in for a rude surprise after downing even a single bottle of Dogfish Head Brewerys 120 Minute IPA (18-20% ABV).
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