Proposed bill would raise minimum age to enter Louisiana bars

BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) — One Louisiana lawmaker has filed a bill that would change the minimum age requirement to walk into a bar.

Currently, in the state, 18-year-olds are allowed inside bars despite not being old enough to legally drink alcohol.

Following the death of LSU student Madison Brooks, the East Baton Rouge Parish Alcoholic Beverage Control Board met in early March to present future discussions to have to prevent underage drinking. One suggestion for future discussion included raising the age to enter bars to 21 years old.

SB 194, authored by Sen. Beth Mizell, would make that a reality if passed.

The proposed law would increase the age to enter to 21 years old and removes exceptions for band members who are underage. The bill would also add a requirement that only those who are 21 and older can work as a bartender.

Penalties would also increase. According to the bill’s language, businesses could face fines ranging from $50 to $15,000 and increase the cleansing period to 10 years from the first offense.

The regular legislative session is set to start on April 10.