DOT HS 809 879, April 2005

Consumption of Alcohol by Minors

	Consumption by Minors	EXCEPTIONS
	Consumption by Minors	Student	Religious Services	Medical Treatment	Parent/ Guardian/ Custodian Consent/ Presence	Spouse Consent/ Presence	Any Private Location	Private Residence	Only Minor's/ Parent's/ Guardian's Home	Law Enforcement
Alabama	√
Alaska	√			√	√	√
Arizona	√		√	√
Arkansas
California	√
Colorado²⁴	√		√	√	√		√
Connecticut
Delaware²⁵	√		√		√			√
District of Columbia	√
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho	√
Illinois	√		√		√			√
Indiana	√
Iowa
Kansas²⁶	√				√					√
Kentucky
Louisiana	√		√	√	√	√		√
Maine	√				√			√
Maryland²⁷	√		√		√			√
Massachusetts
Michigan	√	√	√
Minnesota	√				√				√
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana	√		√	√	√
Nebraska	√		√						√	√
Nevada	√
New Hampshire
New Jersey²⁸	√		√		√
New Mexico
New York	√	√			√
North Carolina	√
North Dakota	√		√
Ohio	√		√	√	√	√
Oklahoma	√				√
Oregon	√		√		√			√
Pennsylvania	√		√
Rhode Island	√
South Carolina
South Dakota	√		√	√	√	√
Tennessee	√		√
Texas	√				√	√
Utah	√			√
Vermont	√	√
Virginia
Washington	√		√	√	√
West Virginia	√
Wisconsin	√				√	√
Wyoming
State Totals	36	3	17	9	19	6	1	6	2	2

²⁴Colorado’s exception requires the knowledge and consent of the owner of the private property when minors possess or consume alcohol (in addition to the consent or presence of a parent or guardian). Also, it is an affirmative defense to illegal possession or consumption that existence of ethyl alcohol in minor’s body is due solely to ingested confectionery or a beverage that contained less than 0.5 percent of ethyl alcohol by weight.

²⁵ Delaware’s exception includes “members of the same family” and allows possession or consumption of alcohol by minors in the “private home of any of said members.”

²⁶Kansas's exception allows minors to “violate the provisions of the Kansas Liquor Control Act” if they are under the direction of a licensee's self-compliance program.

²⁷Maryland's exception allows possession or consumption of alcohol by minors if an adult member of their immediate family allows it.

²⁸New Jersey's exception allows possession or consumption of alcohol by minors with the permission and in the presence of a relative 21 or older.