Colorado considers letting cities set bar hours; MADD worries change would boost drunken driving

A bill that would allow Colorado municipalities to extend the hours when businesses can serve alcohol has raised concerns the change could boost the number of intoxicated drivers on the state’s roads.

State law prohibits businesses from serving alcohol between 2 a.m. and 7 a.m. But House Bill 1123, which was approved by an 11-2 vote Wednesday by the Colorado House’s local government committee, would change that.

“The issue for me is giving local cities and counties and districts the ability to control their own alcohol policies rather than having control by the state,” said Dan Thurlow, R-Grand Junction, one of the bill’s sponsors.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving opposes the bill, saying it could encourage people who have been imbibing to drive to a bar in a nearby community that has a later closing time.

Read more: http://www.denverpost.com/2017/02/09/colorado-cities-set-bar-hours/