There are few things more relaxing than sitting down with a nice beer, glass of wine, or thumb of Scotch after a long day of working on cases, doing law research, and reading the complex language of federal statutes and regulations.
However, you need to be careful. Though you might think it’s the most natural thing in the world to have a drink at home or catch a couple of cold ones at happy hour, many places have legal statutes in place that prohibit people from drinking as freely as you’d think.
Here are just a few of the oddest drinking legal statutes we were able to find through our legislative history research.
No Drinking While Driving… a Horse in Colorado.
Unfortunately for cowboys, Colorado has a legal statute forbidding its citizens from drinking while on horseback. Oddly enough, it kind of makes sense, because they consider a horse to be a vehicle.
No More Than Three Sips If You’re Standing in Texas.
The bad news is that Texas has a legal statute declaring it illegal to take more than three sips of beer if you’re standing up. The good news is that — since everything is bigger in Texas — those sips will do you plenty. The legal statute estimates that one sip is the equivalent to about 13 ounces, so you can still chug a beer if you’re standing.
No Happy Hours in Massachusetts.
Of all the odd legal statutes on this short list, this is perhaps the most logical one. Massachusetts has made it illegal for bars, taverns, pubs, or other drinking establishments to offer patrons a happy hour, at least where booze is concerned. The reason being that the state economy would suffer a staggering loss. If Boston alone could discount beer, Massachusetts would lose an incredible $1,309,788 per hour.
Believe it or not, these are just a few of the weird drinking laws on the books today. If you know of any other zany ones, feel free to share in the comments. Find out more here.
