Policing the Police Power: Analyzing Safety-Minded Restrictions on Drink Specials as Valid Exercise of Municipal Authority

Authors

Raymond Rhatican

Abstract

This article explores the basis and contours of municipal police power through a critical review of recent restrictions proposed in Columbia, Missouri and elsewhere on drink specials. These restrictions are an attempt at benefit-shifting, which would impose an economic burden on restaurant and bar proprietors in exchange for an expected public benefit in reduced late-night nuisances and safety hazards. The article argues that municipal authority pursuant to the police power should be subject to a more exacting level of judicial scrutiny to ensure reasonable and well-considered regulation. Finally, this article suggests a more effective and less burdensome way to address the community’s concerns regarding liquor sales without punishing a small group of individuals.

First Page

273

Recommended Citation

Raymond Rhatican, Policing the Police Power: Analyzing Safety-Minded Restrictions on Drink Specials as Valid Exercise of Municipal Authority, 4 Bus. Entrepreneurship & Tax L. Rev. 273 (2020).
Available at: https://scholarship.law.missouri.edu/betr/vol4/iss2/6