Calling on the Committees on Licenses and Inspections and Public Safety to hold public hearings on the feasibility of requiring responsible alcohol server training programs for businesses holding liquor licenses.

WHEREAS, According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, alcohol involvement remains the leading factor in motor vehicle deaths; and

WHEREAS, In 1999 alone, there were 15,786 alcohol-related fatalities nationwide, representing an average of one alcohol-related death every 33 minutes; and

WHEREAS, Nearly 1.5 million drivers are arrested annually for driving under the influence, the vast majority of these drivers are young males under the age of 30; and

WHEREAS, There are hundreds of establishments in Philadelphia licensed to sell alcoholic beverages, and there is a very real risk that these licensees have with respect to the sale of alcohol. If one of their customers drinks a sufficient quantity of alcohol until they are legally intoxicated, drives while in this condition and is involved in an accident, the owner of the establishment may be held liable; and

WHEREAS, Blood alcohol levels are influenced by several variables including body weight, food consumed, type of liquor consumed and number of drinks consumed. It may be difficult for a bartender or server to determine when a patron has “had enough”; and

WHEREAS, In order to protect patrons, owners and employees of establishments that serve liquor, bartenders should be trained on how to identify the progressive stages of intoxication, the identification of time delay between consumption and visibility of signs of intoxication, skills to handle patrons including intervention procedures, and procedures for monitoring consumption and maintaining incident reports; now therefore

RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That the Committees on Licenses and Inspections and Public Safety hold public hearings to discuss the feasibility of requiring responsible alcohol server training programs for businesses holding liquor licenses.

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