Licensing, scanners and fake IDs: Utah panel weighs new ID‑verification rules for restaurants and bars

Department of Alcoholic Beverage Services (DABS) officials, Department of Public Safety investigators and industry representatives briefed the interim Business, Labor and Commerce Committee on recent changes to Utah identification law, scanner technology, enforcement practice and concerns from restaurant operators.

Erica Evans, executive director of DABS, and Brian Swan, DABS deputy director for legal and regulatory affairs, reviewed the current statutory framework for acceptable identification (passports, U.S. driver’s licenses, military IDs with photo and date of birth, and state‑issued ID cards) and explained new requirements enacted last session that affect how on‑premise licensees (bars, taverns and restaurants) verify patrons.

Under current statute, establishments must electronically verify identification for people who ‘‘appear to be 35 years of age or younger.’’ The recent legislation expands verification duties: on‑premise licensees now must verify an individual’s identification with a scanning device regardless of physical appearance when a person orders alcohol, and DABS must ensure scanning devices can capture each state’s hidden security features. The law also directs the driver‑license division to create an ‘‘interdicted…