In 1999, lawmakers made possession of alcohol by minors a civil offense and required teens to go through alcohol-dependency testing and treatment, if needed. Those who don't comply have their driver's licenses suspended for 90 days.

Since the law went into effect, 4,013 of the 8,004 tickets issued for possession of alcohol by minors have resulted in a license suspension. Because the state Department of Motor Vehicles doesn't keep the list of license suspensions confidential, many families have seen hefty increases in their car-insurance rates.

"None of this means the law isn't working. From my perspective it is. We've reduced the number of teen deaths. There are a couple of problems that need to be addressed," said Sen. Richard Sears (D-Bennington), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which is reviewing the law.

Bennington County State's Attorney William Wright said teens were unaware of the consequences of a license suspension. He added that the "unintended consequences" should be addressed, but that the system itself was working.

"We want to keep it working," said Sears. "What we want to see is many more of the kids getting [treatment] programming. That was the purpose of making it a civil ticket. The goal was to get everyone to comply. Fifty percent is not enough."

COMMENTS ON THIS ARTICLE:

Your Turn! Post a public comment (read guidelines):

Name:
Comment: (limit 200 words)
Enter this word (help):	Change

GUIDELINES: 
To keep this feature useful for all, please:

1. Keep it clean, courteous, and on-topic. Comments are meant for thoughtful discussion of the article published above.
   
   
2. Do not post promotional links to organizations, products or services, or personal requests for assistance (get help).
   
   
3. Proof your comments carefully, use good spelling and punctuation, and don't use ALL CAPS. Comments are published immediately and cannot be edited.

Deceptive, slanderous and commercially-motivated posts are prohibited. We reserve the right to remove comments not conforming to these guidelines. (Report a comment).

Have questions or feedback? Contact us.