Proposed Social Hosting Ordinance
Yesterday the Public Safety and health Committee approved a Social Hosting Ordinance I have been working on. This has gotten a good deal of interest and I thought it might be useful to provide some background, share some research and answer some questions here. The new ordinance would make it illegal for a person to host an event or gathering where alcohol or alcoholic beverages are present, when the person knows or has reason to know that an underage person will or does consume alcohol or possess alcohol with the intent to consume it. If this ordinance passes, hosting a gathering where underage drinking occurs will be a misdemeanor crime. If convicted, consequences can range from being referred to a restorative justice program all the way up to 90 days in jails and fines up to $1,000. Other crimes at this level include: - Use or possession of drug paraphernalia in a public place - Operation of a rental dwelling without a license - Loitering with intent to solicit for the purposes o...