How Odell's Law impacts alcohol sales in Oklahoma

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla — A new law went into effect at the beginning of November that gives businesses leeway on serving alcohol to customers who are clearly over the age of 21.

“Odell’s Law” went into effect earlier this month and removes the requirement for businesses to check IDs before serving alcohol to customers.

The law is named after a 90-year-old man who was denied a beer because he didn’t have his ID on him.

"We've all stood in line at a convenience store, and there's, you know, some guy in front of you that's got a 12-pack, and he's about 80 years old or whatever, you know, I mean, obviously of age, and everybody's piled up, and it's just a business-friendly act," said Senator Darrell Weaver, (R) Moore.

The Oklahoma ABLE Commission says while ID checks aren't mandated by the state, businesses are still liable for serving those who are underage, so they encourage them to continue checking IDs.

"That's the best way to determine if a patron is under age. ABLE will never cite a business for failing to check an I.D., but we will cite someone for the actual sale to a minor," said Lori Carter, assistant director and general counsel, Oklahoma ABLE Commission.

When the law was signed in May, one bartender told News 4 she was nervous about it.

"You're gauging someone's age based off of, like, how you deem them, and so I just feel like, no, it's not easy to tell. I feel like you just need to verify their age by their ID," said Morghan Taylor.

That's why many bars and restaurants across the metro tell News 4 that they are choosing to stick to their own policies and will continue checking IDs to ensure they aren't serving minors.

"There's no prohibition to that, I think that's a very important key on this whole piece of legislation, is that if you want to ID people go ahead and ID people," said Sen. Weaver.

With Odell's Law now in effect, businesses must weigh convenience against caution.

The ABLE Commission says any business licensed through them can get an administrative citation if they sell alcohol to someone underage, putting the bartender and business at risk.