ENROLLED
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 268
(Senators Kessler, Helmick, Plymale, Prezioso, Boley, McKenzie, Unger,
Foster, Barnes and Jenkins, original sponsors)
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[Passed April 9, 2005; in effect ninety days from passage.]
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AN ACT to amend and reenact §11-16-19 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended; and to amend and reenact §60-3A-24 of said
code, all relating to underage possession of nonintoxicating
beer and alcoholic liquor; and conforming state law to federal
requirements by providing that violation by a person under the
age of eighteen constitutes a status offense instead of a
misdemeanor.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §11-16-19 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted; and that §60-3A-24 of said code be
amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
CHAPTER 11. TAXATION.
ARTICLE 16. NONINTOXICATING BEER.
§11-16-19. Unlawful acts of persons; criminal penalties.
(a)(1) Any person eighteen or over but under the age of
twenty-one years who purchases, consumes, sells, possesses or
serves nonintoxicating beer is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined an amount not to exceed five
hundred dollars or shall be incarcerated in jail for a period not
to exceed seventy-two hours, or both fined and imprisoned or, in
lieu of such fine and incarceration, may, for the first offense, be
placed on probation for a period not to exceed one year. Any
person under the age of eighteen years who purchases, consumes,
sells, possesses or serves nonintoxicating beer is guilty of a
status offense as that term is defined in section four, article
one, chapter forty-nine of this code and, upon adjudication
therefor, shall be referred to the Department of Health and Human
Resources for services, as provided in section eleven, article five
of said chapter.
(2) Nothing in this article, nor any rule or regulation of the
Commissioner, shall prevent or be deemed to prohibit any person who
is at least eighteen years of age from serving in the lawful
employment of any licensee, which may include the sale or delivery
of nonintoxicating beer as defined in this article. Further,
nothing in this article, nor any rule or regulation of the
Commissioner, shall prevent or be deemed to prohibit any person who
is less than eighteen but at least sixteen years of age from being
employed by a licensee whose principal business is the sale of food
or consumer goods or the providing of recreational activities,
including, but not limited to, nationally franchised fast food
outlets, family-oriented restaurants, bowling alleys, drug stores,
discount stores, grocery stores and convenience stores:
Provided,
That such person shall not sell or deliver nonintoxicating beer.
(3) Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit a person who is
at least eighteen years of age from purchasing or possessing nonintoxicating beer when he or she is acting upon the request of
or under the direction and control of any member of a state,
federal or local law-enforcement agency or the West Virginia
Alcohol Beverage Administration while the agency is conducting an
investigation or other activity relating to the enforcement of the
alcohol beverage control statutes and the rules of the
Commissioner.
(b) Any person under the age of twenty-one years who, for the
purpose of purchasing nonintoxicating beer, misrepresents his or
her age or who for such purpose presents or offers any written
evidence of age which is false, fraudulent or not actually his or
her own or who illegally attempts to purchase nonintoxicating beer
is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be
fined an amount not to exceed fifty dollars or shall be imprisoned
in jail for a period not to exceed seventy-two hours, or both such
fine and imprisonment or, in lieu of such fine and imprisonment,
may, for the first offense, be placed on probation for a period not
exceeding one year.
(c) Any person who shall knowingly buy for, give to or furnish
nonintoxicating beer to anyone under the age of twenty-one to whom
they are not related by blood or marriage is guilty of a
misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined an amount
not to exceed one hundred dollars or shall be imprisoned in jail
for a period not to exceed ten days, or both such fine and
imprisonment.
(d)(1) Any person who at any one time transports into the
state for their personal use, and not for resale, more than six and
seventy-five hundredths gallons of nonintoxicating beer, upon which the West Virginia barrel tax has not been imposed, shall be guilty
of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined an
amount not to exceed one hundred dollars and have all the untaxed
nonintoxicating beer in their possession at the time of the arrest
confiscated, or imprisoned for ten days in jail, or both fined and
imprisoned.
(2) If the Congress of the United States repeals the mandate
established by the Surface Transportation Assistance Act of 1982
relating to national uniform drinking age of twenty-one as found in
section six of Public Law 98-363, or a court of competent
jurisdiction declares the provision to be unconstitutional or
otherwise invalid, it is the intent of the Legislature that the
provisions contained in this section and section eighteen of this
article which prohibit the sale, furnishing, giving, purchase or
ownership of nonintoxicating beer to or by a person who is less
than twenty-one years of age shall be null and void and the
provisions therein shall thereafter remain in effect and apply to
the sale, furnishing, giving, purchase or ownership of
nonintoxicating beer to or by a person who is less than nineteen
years of age.
CHAPTER 60. STATE CONTROL OF ALCOHOLIC LIQUORS.
ARTICLE 3A. SALES BY RETAIL LIQUOR LICENSEES.
§60-3A-24. Unlawful acts by persons.
(a)(1) Any person who is eighteen or over but under the age of
twenty-one years who purchases, consumes, sells, serves or
possesses alcoholic liquor is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be fined an amount not to exceed five
hundred dollars or shall be incarcerated in jail for a period not to exceed seventy-two hours, or both fined and imprisoned or, in
lieu of such fine and incarceration, may, for the first offense, be
placed on probation for a period not to exceed one year. Any
person who is under eighteen years who purchases, consumes, sells,
serves or possesses alcoholic liquor is guilty of a status offense,
as that term is defined in section four, article one, chapter
forty-nine of this code and, upon adjudication therefor, shall be
referred to the Department of Health and Human Resources for
services, as provided in section eleven, article five of said
chapter.
(2) Nothing in this article, nor any rule or regulation of the
Commissioner, shall prevent or be deemed to prohibit any person who
is at least eighteen years of age from serving in the lawful
employment of a licensee which includes the sale and serving of
alcoholic liquor.
(3) Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit a person who is
at least eighteen years of age from purchasing or possessing
alcoholic liquor when he or she is acting upon the request of or
under the direction and control of any member of a state, federal
or local Law-enforcement Agency or the West Virginia Alcohol
Beverage Administration while the agency is conducting an
investigation or other activity relating to the enforcement of the
alcohol beverage control statutes and the rules and regulations of
the Commissioner.
(b) Any person under the age of twenty-one years who, for the
purpose of purchasing liquor from a retail licensee, misrepresents
his or her age or who for such purpose presents or offers any
written evidence of age which is false, fraudulent or not actually his or her own or who illegally attempts to purchase liquor from a
retail licensee is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction
thereof, shall be fined an amount not to exceed fifty dollars or
imprisoned in jail for a period not to exceed seventy-two hours, or
both fined and imprisoned or, in lieu of such fine and
imprisonment, may, for the first offense, be placed on probation
for a period not exceeding one year.
(c) Any person who knowingly buys for, gives to or furnishes
to anyone under the age of twenty-one to whom he or she is not
related by blood or marriage any liquor from whatever source is
guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be
fined an amount not to exceed one hundred dollars or imprisoned in
jail for a period not to exceed ten days, or both fined and
imprisoned.
(d) No person while on the premises of a retail outlet may
consume liquor or break the seal on any package or bottle of
liquor. Any person who violates the provisions of this subsection
is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be
fined an amount not to exceed one hundred dollars or imprisoned in
jail for a period not to exceed ten days, or both fined and
imprisoned.