HARTFORD, Conn. -- The Connecticut House of Representatives has voted overwhelmingly to ban powdered alcohol, reported The Hartford Courant.
After the sale of powdered alcohol was approved by the federal government in March, states began responding by enacting bans on the strong-proof alcohol that legislators say is hard to regulate. The bans have already been enacted by Vermont, South Carolina, Alaska, Delaware, Louisiana, Utah, and Virginia, among others.
The Connecticut House passed the measure by 143 to 2 with six members absent. The bill, which was approved previously by the state Senate, now goes to Governor Dannel Malloy for his signature.
Powdered alcohol is freeze-dried vodka, rum or other drinks that are generally contained in small packets that can be sold in liquor or grocery stores. The powder is added to water in order to be mixed into an alcoholic drink. The problem, legislators said, is that the packets can be easily smuggled into concerts or schools without detection in a way that bottles cannot.
State Representative Pamela Staneski (R) said it is important to ban powdered alcohol to keep it out of the hands of teenagers.
State Rep. Arthur O'Neill (R) questioned why powdered alcohol was not simply regulated instead of being banned completely. He said that Congress should vote to ban it nationwide, rather than having every state take individual action.
The privately held company that created the product, known as Palcohol, issued a response on its website in defending its product:
"Listen, people can snort black pepper … so do we ban it? No, just because a few goofballs use a product irresponsibly doesn't mean you ban it. But even the goofballs won't snort Palcohol due to the pain the alcohol would cause. It really burns. Imagine sniffing liquid vodka. Second, it's impractical. It takes approximately 60 minutes to snort the equivalent of one shot of vodka. Why would anyone do that when they can do a shot of liquid vodka in two seconds?"
The prohibition was included in an omnibus bill about multiple alcohol issues. The bill also allows package stores to sell cigars for the first time, said the report. Currently, package stores are allowed to sell cigarettes, and the bill would expand the list of regulated items that can be sold in Connecticut.
Click here to view the full Courant report.
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