The Alaska Senate passed a bill Monday that would allow teenagers to serve alcohol at restaurants and a variety of other businesses. The bill would lower the minimum age to serve alcohol from 21 to 18.
If the bill becomes law, 18-year-olds could serve alcohol in breweries, distilleries, wineries, hotels, lodges, resorts and restaurants. The minimum age to serve in a licensed bar or any venue offering “adult entertainment,” though, would remain 21.
“Senate Bill 15 strikes a responsible balance between economic opportunity and public safety,” Sen. Kelly Merrick, R-Anchorage and the bill sponsor, said on the Senate floor. “It supports Alaskan businesses and workforce while ensuring that alcohol regulations remain clear and enforceable.”
The restaurant industry is backing the bill. The head of the state’s largest hospitality group told lawmakers that lowering the minimum serving age would help alleviate a labor shortage.
“Employers struggle to promote or retain quality employees who are 18-20 years of age because they are prohibited from serving alcohol or supervising other employees who serve or sell alcohol,” Sarah Harlow, the president and CEO of the Alaska Cabaret, Hotel, Restaurant and Retailers Association said in a letter to lawmakers. “Alaska is not competitive in this space, and our industry is experiencing an outmigration of young workers.”
Alaska is one of just three states, along with Nevada and Utah, to require restaurant servers to be 21 or older, according to documents filed alongside the bill.
Support for dropping the minimum serving age was not universal — the head of an anti-alcohol abuse advocacy group told a Senate committee the move could normalize underage drinking and undermine public health efforts.
The bill would also tweak alcohol laws surrounding theater performances, allowing theaters to continue serving until an hour after the show, rather than having to stop after intermission.
The bill would also require bars and other businesses selling alcohol, like liquor stores, to post signs warning that alcohol is linked to an elevated risk of cancer.
A similar bill passed in the final moments of last year’s session. But because the bill passed after midnight on the final day of the session allowed by the Alaska Constitution, Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed it.
The bill passed the Senate unanimously. It now heads to the state House.
