Underage Drinking: Success Stories

Massachusetts’ ABCC has jurisdiction over alcohol laws for the entire State. In 2000, the ABCC’s staff was reduced to zero, eliminating statewide enforcement of alcohol-related laws. When the Legislature found out about these cuts, it passed a bill restoring the staff to its previous strength—plus an increase to 14 investigators over 2 years.

Under the leadership of Chief Investigator Ted Mahony, these investigators began implementing innovative and proactive enforcement strategies across the State. Where underage drinking was a concern, they began surveillance operations, fake ID checks, and compliance checks—of which the ABCC averaged 120 per week. These programs have yielded significant results since their inception. In particular, compliance checks have seen an 8-point drop in violations, from 18% to 10%, over 2 years. The ABCC estimates that nearly 200 townships and cities in the State would need to hire additional full- or part-time police officers to do the work of their 14 full-time, Statewide investigators.

According to Chief Mahony, outlet-based surveillance operations are their most effective program. Unlike most similar programs, these operations target adults as well as minors attempting to purchase alcohol; while one officer works inside the outlet, another will watch the parking lot for possible third-party transactions or other illegal activity. With this technique, the investigators have prevented many adults from purchasing alcohol for minors. In college towns, the investigators alert campus police when they suspect adults are purchasing alcohol for a house party.

The surveillance operations also extend to bars, where investigators serve as doormen to check for false IDs. Using this technique in an effort called Operation Safe Spring, the ABCC checked nearly 1800 IDs and charged 47 adults with procuring alcohol for minors. A similar operation, Safe Summer, saw 1219 IDs checked and 30 adults charged with procuring for minors.

In addition to their innovative enforcement programs, the ABCC works proactively to prevent problems. “I try to educate the licensees,” says one ABCC investigator. When they visit a new licensee for the first time, investigators will give the owners and managers tips on detecting fake IDs, preventing sales to minors, and other ways to avoid breaking the law. According to investigators, licensees appreciate the help, and it reduces future problems.

Massachusetts’ ABCC has shown its commitment to reducing underage drinking through innovative and proactive efforts. Unfortunately, the ABCC’s investigative staff faces layoffs in the current budget environment; the agency’s ability to continue its innovative work is again in the hands of the Legislature.