Why I Support Mandatory Carding

This column was submitted by Randy Zion and published in the Evansville Courier & Press.

Somehow we need to put common sense into this debate on the mandatory carding law.

Virtually everyone who shops for liquor drives an automobile to get to the store whether it is a grocery, big box chain, convenience store or liquor store. Driving should involve having a license on your person and likely in your wallet. And virtually every customer gets out a wallet for a credit card or cash.

I’ve been a package store owner since 1973, and I can tell you this is a law that is working.

Without mandatory carding, our clerks carded everyone under some arbitrary age. But judging age is very subjective and you anger the customers that are slightly under or over the required legal age, especially if they are regular customers or look young for their age. Consequently, clerks can let younger and younger customers slip by and then the system fails.

How do we know this?

Before the carding law was implemented, the Indiana State Excise Police did a statewide survey to check on who was illegally serving minors. Every industry sector that sells and serves alcohol failed the test.

If we go back to carding people under a certain age, history tells us that industry will start having problems with serving minors. Is a minor inconvenience worth keeping alcohol from minors?

When the mandatory carding law was first implemented, it was not pleasant for any retail clerk. But now our customers accept the law and we are having virtually no problems.

We also used to be inundated with minors trying to be served. When asked for an ID, the minor would say that it was in their car and would not return. Now, they don’t even try because everyone must show identification.

The carding law was done for some very important reasons. Unlike other retail associations who opposed the measure, our industry has always supported mandatory carding.

I find it incredible that legislators are considering changing a good law because of an occasional minor inconvenience.

I am 63 years old—and my ID is at the ready every time I make a purchase.

We’re asking our customers to get behind the law, and most are not complaining.