Federal Highway Policy
Federal Highway Policy: Minimum Legal Drinking Age
Ashley Miller
American National Government
Mark Ladd
February 17, 2014
The Minimum Legal Drinking Age (MLDA) laws were created in the US after the Prohibition in 1933. AT this time, many states set the MLDA at 21. When the voting age was lowered to 18 in 1971, many states also lowered their drinking age to 18 or 19 (Fell, 2009). After the lowering, the amount of alcohol related accidents involving young adults age 18 to 20 had dramatically increased. Studies also showed that when the drinking age was raised, traffic crashes and alcohol related accidents were significantly lower. Consequently, Congress created the National Uniform Drinking Age 21 Act, which provided a substantial financial incentive for states to adopt an MLDA of 21, and President Reagan signed the bill into law in 1984 (Fell, 2009). Between 1982 and 1998, the percentage of fatal crashes involving drunk drivers ages 20 and younger, has decreased by 59 in the US. “The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has estimated that MLDA laws save approximately 900 lives a year in traffic fatalities alone (Fell, 2009).
According to our text, “A cross-over sanction is a threat to withhold national funds from programs states line, or even need, if they do not implement other programs that national government wants” (Levin-Waldman, 2012). The MLDA is a perfect example of this because if the states did not raise the minimum drinking age, they would lose their federal highway funds. The law never actually set a national minimum drinking age, it actually established a goal and used the cross-over sanction as a mechanism to achieve it. “Still, the national government used the cross-over sanction to compel states to pass the minimum age drinking laws in accordance with its wishes” (Levin-Waldman, 2012).
There is no evidence that lowering the MLDA will reduce the underage drinking problem. Conversely,
Ashley Miller
American National Government
Mark Ladd
February 17, 2014
The Minimum Legal Drinking Age (MLDA) laws were created in the US after the Prohibition in 1933. AT this time, many states set the MLDA at 21. When the voting age was lowered to 18 in 1971, many states also lowered their drinking age to 18 or 19 (Fell, 2009). After the lowering, the amount of alcohol related accidents involving young adults age 18 to 20 had dramatically increased. Studies also showed that when the drinking age was raised, traffic crashes and alcohol related accidents were significantly lower. Consequently, Congress created the National Uniform Drinking Age 21 Act, which provided a substantial financial incentive for states to adopt an MLDA of 21, and President Reagan signed the bill into law in 1984 (Fell, 2009). Between 1982 and 1998, the percentage of fatal crashes involving drunk drivers ages 20 and younger, has decreased by 59 in the US. “The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has estimated that MLDA laws save approximately 900 lives a year in traffic fatalities alone (Fell, 2009).
According to our text, “A cross-over sanction is a threat to withhold national funds from programs states line, or even need, if they do not implement other programs that national government wants” (Levin-Waldman, 2012). The MLDA is a perfect example of this because if the states did not raise the minimum drinking age, they would lose their federal highway funds. The law never actually set a national minimum drinking age, it actually established a goal and used the cross-over sanction as a mechanism to achieve it. “Still, the national government used the cross-over sanction to compel states to pass the minimum age drinking laws in accordance with its wishes” (Levin-Waldman, 2012).
There is no evidence that lowering the MLDA will reduce the underage drinking problem. Conversely,
Cited: Fell, J. (2009). Minimum Legal Drinking Age Policy Knowledge Asset. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation 's Substance Abuse Policy Research Program. Retrieved from http://saprp.org/knowledgeassets/knowledge_detail.cfm?KAID=19 Levin-Waldman, O.M. (2012). American Government. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint education, Inc. Slade, J. (2010). Pros and Cons of the Legal Drinking Age. Duke University Research Blog. Retrieved from http://research.duke.edu/blog/2010/05/pros-and-cons-legal-drinking-age