What are the Facts?
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The 21 Ordinance in Ames is Failing
With the 21 entry age ordinance, binge drinking at Wisconsin has INCREASED
The VEISHEA riots in Ames were linked to the 21 entry age ordinance
College towns with 21 entry age ordinances have riots
Iowa Law Does Not Have Age Restriction in Restaurants and Clubs
21 Age Entry Law in Surrounding University Towns
59% of Iowa City Voters Do Not Support a 21 Entry Age Ordinance
Teen Drunk Driving Fatalities Down 45%
Most Iowa Youth Do Not Drink Excessively
The Definition of "Binge" Drinking is Flawed
No Studies Indicating a 21 Bar Entry Age Will Reduce Underage Drinking
21 Entry Age Ordinances Make Youth Drive Their Cars
About 550 - 600 Students Will Lose Their Jobs if the 21 Bar Entry Age Ordinance Passes
The Unintended Consequences of a 21 Entry Age Ordinance
The Legal Age of an Adult is 18
The 21 Ordinance in Ames is Failing
"Two Iowa State students have recently died in non related accidents relating to off campus parties. In fact, nationwide, off campus house parties are proving to be very deadly to college students. Below is a link to these tragedies and the related circumstances. Not included on this list is The University of Iowa student that died on August 31, 2005 after falling from a balcony at a house party."
http://compelledtoact.com/Tragic_listing/Main_listing_victims.htm
With the 21 entry age ordinance, binge drinking at Wisconsin has INCREASED
The University of Wisconsin is one of the few Universities in the Big Ten that has a decent history of binge drinking rates. This data shows that there has not been any decrease in overall binge drinking rates since the studies started in 1993. In fact, the binge drinking rates have slightly increased from an average of 60.5% in the first three years of the studies to 62% on average in the last three years of it. This data can be found at http://pace.uhs.wisc.edu/data_cas.php. Additionally, The University of Wisconsin has been rated the #1 party school in the United States by both The Princeton Review and Playboy. Now, add the fact that UW has to deal with yearly riots caused by student drinking.
The following is an excerpt from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Wisconsin-Madison
"...(In) 2005...447 people were arrested between Friday and Saturday nights, primarily for alcohol-related violations. Police decided to end the larger scale Saturday night party around 2 a.m. Finally, unable to coerce the 1,000 remaining partiers to clear the street, police ended the event with the use of riot gear and pepper spray for the fourth consecutive year. According to Mayor Dave Cieslewicz, the huge police presence at the party ultimately cost the city an estimated $750,000."
The dangerous & costly atmosphere in Madison is definitely not the model that we want to follow in Iowa City!
The VEISHEA riots in Ames were linked to the 21 entry age ordinance
According to the 2004 Task Force on Assuring Successful VEISHEA and Other Student/Community Celebrations, the 21 entry age ordinance was a contributing factor to the riots. On page 21 in the document it states “An Ames City ordinance forbidding people below the drinking age from entering local bars. The ordinance restricts the ability of those who are underage to socialize with their friends who may legally drink in bars; this restriction, in turn, drives people to unregulated off-campus parties, where people of all ages socialize freely.” It adds “The more restrictive drinking rules resulted in movement of drinking to large, unregulated off-campus parties and created the possibility of more frequent hostile encounters with police.”
http://www.public.iastate.edu/~dschwein/riotreport.pdf
College towns with 21 entry age ordinances have riots
It’s pretty simple…Iowa State, Ohio State, and Wisconsin all have 21 entry age ordinances and have all recently had drinking induced rioting. The University of Iowa, The University of Illinois, Northwestern University and The University of Minnesota do not have the entry age ordinances and have not recently had drinking induced rioting. These events are not coincidences, but even more telling is that The University of Northern Iowa had a drinking induced riot when the 21 entry age ordinance was in effect and none since they repealed it. http://www.public.iastate.edu/~dschwein/riotreport.pd
Iowa Law Does Not Have Age Restriction in Restaurants and Clubs
State law does not restrict the age of entry into restaurants and clubs. The proposed ordinance will put us out-of-line with state law. State lawmakers had the foresight not to put age restrictions on entry into restaurants and clubs; we shouldn’t do it either.
21 Age Entry Law in Surrounding University Towns
The communities that are home to the University of Illinois, the University of Minnesota, the University of Missouri, Northwestern, Michigan State University, and the University of Northern Iowa do NOT have a 21 entry age ordinance.
In fact, UNI had a 21 entry age ordinance until it was repealed because of the detrimental effect it had on the community.
59% of Iowa City Voters Do Not Support a 21 Entry Age Ordinance
An exit poll taken in 2004 by Prof. David Redlawsk, UI, indicated that 59% of the voters do not support a 21 entry age ordinance.
Teen Drunk Driving Fatalities Down 45%
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, total fatalities in Iowa teen (age 16-20) drunk-driving crashes have declined 45% since 2000. The 21 bar entry age ordinance could cause Iowa City’s young adults to get into cars to drive elsewhere to drink, which may cause an upswing in drunk driving accidents and fatalities.
Most Iowa Youth Do Not Drink Excessively
According to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 74% of Iowans aged 12-20 do not drink five or more drinks per occasion.
The Definition of "Binge" Drinking is Flawed
The commonly quoted definition of "binge" drinking is four drinks per occasion for females and five drinks per occasion for males. This ignores the fact that most people drinking those amounts do so over the course of a long evening and do not become legally intoxicated. http://www.healthstatus.com/bac.html
There Are No Studies Indicating a 21 Bar Entry Age Will Reduce Underage Drinking
The "Vote Yes" group is lying to you! On the main page of their original website they assert that “research” shows :
- "When a legal age bar entry ordinance is in effect, people under the age of 21 drink less overall and continue to do so through their early twenties."
- "A legal age ordinance reduces alcohol consumption, and is associated with decreased rates of traffic crashes."
But the research they cite refers to studies of the Minimum Legal Drinking Age (MLDA), NOT the legal bar entry age. Those are two entirely different issues, but “Vote Yes” simply (and deceivingly) substituted one for the other. There are no studies regarding the legal bar entry age; saying there are is simply dishonest.
It's really a matter of supply and demand. We all know that throwing young adults out of the bars won't decrease demand, but will it decrease the supply?
No! Underage drinkers in restaurants and clubs are often supplied by their friends who are 21 or older. If they drink at house parties, they are supplied by their legal-age friends as well. And since it costs less to drink at home, kicking them out of the bars will actually increase drinking!
An equation has been written by an economist describing how moving drinking from restaurants and clubs to private homes “will result in a considerable increase in the level of alcohol consumption for all but the heaviest drinkers." (Stephen S. Cuellar, 2006)
21 Entry Age Ordinances Make Youth Drive Their Cars
The “Vote Yes” group asserts that people from Cedar Rapids (which has a 21 entry age ordinance) come to Iowa City because “Iowa City is a drinking destination for underage consumers.” But they also insist that a 21 entry age ordinance here would not force our young adults to travel elsewhere! These two positions are mutually contradictory and therefore logically cannot both be true.
The fact is: the Cedar Rapids council unwisely passed the 21 entry age ordinance, causing youth to drive here. If we pass the ordinance, our young adults will undoubtedly drive elsewhere too. Coralville and other cities in Johnson County do not have, and do not plan to enact, the ordinance: these communities are in easy reach via automobile, and this will put more young adults on the road, drunk or sober, late in the evenings.
About 550 - 600 Students Will Lose Their Jobs if the 21 Bar Entry Age Ordinance Passes
There are approximately 1445 students working in restaurants and clubs in Iowa City. About 40% of these people will lose their jobs when their places of employment close or have to cut back. That amounts to 578 jobs. Most of these employees are making at least $10 per hour and many are making over $20 per hour. Not only will that put a major strain on their ability to pay for school, but the financial impact on local retailers will also be dramatic.
The Unintended Consequences of a 21 Entry Age Ordinance
- More house parties will be scattered in the neighborhoods, where enforcement of the underage drinking laws is not merely unlikely, but nearly impossible.
- There will be a huge loss of entertainment and socializing options for tens of thousands of young adults with no viable plans for replacement options. Places like Planet X offered games for children like laser tag, inflatables, and skeeball, but no entertainment for adult college students.
- The local community of musicians, as well as the larger music community, will suffer greatly. Fewer people at the shows means less money for venues and musicians alike. Less monetary incentive to play in Iowa City means fewer live music events, and young musicians will lose a precious, irreplaceable educational opportunity to “learn while doing.”
- Some restaurants and clubs will inevitably go out of business, resulting in the reduction of property values and a downtown full of empty windows. There will be a significant decline in property tax income for the city.
- Drunk driving probably will increase as the students find the need to drive elsewhere to party.
- There will be increased competition amongst all the restaurants and clubs, resulting in lower prices, and hence heavier drinking.
- Many restaurants/clubs rely on the cover charge revenue they receive when live music is featured to help pay the high rents downtown. If they do not receive these revenues, the downtown area could start losing restaurants - or food prices would have to rise dramatically.
- ‘After hours’ or BYOB (Bring Your Own Booze) nightclubs will open. There are several of these in the Des Moines area that opened after a 21 bar entry age ordinance was instituted there. Since ‘after hours clubs’ do not have a liquor license, they close later (usually about 5:00 AM), they do not have any age restrictions, and police do not have to be admitted to the premises without a warrant.
The Legal Age of an Adult is 18
Things you can do (or have to do) as a legal adult:
Vote
Be tried as an adult in all crimes
Get the death penalty for certain crimes
Register for the draft
Fight in a war
Pay child support
Get married
Travel anywhere
Fly a plane
Work in anyplace that will hire you
Sign and enter a contract
Buy guns
Have sex with any other adult (actually16 yrs old in Iowa)
Smoke
Pay income taxes
Get your own health insurance
Things underage adults will not be able to do in a drinking establishment after 10:00 PM in Iowa City if this ordinance passes:
Watch a band
Dance
Socialize with friends
Attend a comedy show
Listen to a DJ
Eat or drink a soda in a restaurant with a liquor license
Attend a Poetry Slam
Play billiards or darts
Watch television (the Iowa vs Syracuse game went past 10:00 and was not available on cable for local residents to view)
People 18-20 years of age are held accountable to virtually all existing laws; this ordinance requires that an exception to this accountability be made, but only in a bar after 10:00 PM. Advocates of the 21 entry age ordinance fail to notice that the ordinance is inconsistent with all our notions of accountability to the law. What they really believe is that this age group requires special preventive measures. Are they adults, or aren't they? Should underage adults who obey the law suffer such restrictions, simply because there are others who don't obey the law? How far should we take this logic?
