COLUMBIA, S.C. – The South Carolina House of Representatives is currently deliberating a key piece of legislation that leaders have identified as a top priority: the Liquor Liability Bill. The bill, which previously passed unanimously through the House, is designed to address rising insurance costs for establishments serving alcohol and to improve DUI laws across the state.
Representative Weston Newton (R – District 120) raised a fundamental question regarding escalating insurance premiums, asking, “The real question that is yet to be answered, is why are insurance premiums going up?”
In 2017, a new law mandated that all establishments selling alcohol maintain $1 million in insurance coverage. According to Representative Jay Jordan (R – District 63), insurance companies have increased their rates since the law’s implementation. He noted that this has forced several bars and restaurants to shut down. “We want to help those folks back home, that are operating these businesses that have seen their premiums go up traumatically in many if not most cases,” said Jordan. “That was really no fault of their own.”
The new proposal provides business owners with pathways to lower their insurance costs. One option is to implement alcohol training programs for employees.
“We can do all this to protect our, our bars and restaurants, our small businesses, but at the end of the day, we got to be protecting the public as well,” Newton said. “The safe serve training component, and the DUI increase in penalties are targeted to do that.”
Laura Hudson from Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) stated that while the bill isn’t perfect, it represents a significant step toward safeguarding businesses and lives in South Carolina. “We need to comply with our constitution, which says that there should be no saloons and South Carolina, which we have to have primarily and substantially food service in order to be licensed,” Hudson said.
A similar bill is also under consideration in the Senate. House Speaker Murrell Smith indicated that he shares a common goal with Governor Henry McMaster and Senate leadership: to make South Carolina a state that protects both businesses and victims of related incidents.
