Proposed Columbia ordinance on drink specials moving forward

The Substance Abuse Advisory Commission met Wednesday in Columbia. On the agenda–a discussion of proposed ordinance that would regulate drink specials in the city.

The ordinance would not eliminate drink specials altogether. Rather, it would eliminate dangerous drink specials that often lead to binge drinking.

Today’s meeting included a discussion of the language of the proposed ordinance. Commission members say it’s being modeled after similar ordinances in other college towns. They are hoping to finalize the language before holding a public hearing in the spring.

Some examples of regulating drink specials are no specials after 11:00 p.m., not serving any drink that costs less than one dollar and not charging more for a soft drink than for the least expensive alcoholic beverage. An alcoholic drink is considered 12 ounces of beer, five ounces of wine or 1.5 ounces of liquor.

Commission Chair Molly Borgmeyer says they want to obtain as much public input as possible. Members say they don’t want to put anyone out of business, but instead, believe bars and restaurants could actually benefit from the proposed ordinance.

ABC 17 News will have more on this story in our 6:00 p.m. newscast.