Few college-aged students have the opportunity, much less the ambition, to tackle the daunting task of changing state legislature. But University of Wisconsin-Madison junior Morgan Rae will get the chance to see a bill that she initiated, which targets underage drinking laws, presented before a Senate committee Wednesday.
Rae, the Associated Students of Madison Legislative Affairs Committee chair, created the Responsible Action Bill, which is sponsored by state Sen. Fred Risser, D-Madison, and will allow legal immunity for underage drinkers who call for help for their peers in emergency situations involving alcohol.
UW-Madison currently has responsible-action guidelines protecting students from punishment when emergency situations involving alcohol occur on campus. Rae said it became apparent to her in her first year at Madison that, even with these guidelines in place, students were still facing uncertainty with jumping into action, as many times they would be outside campus boundaries.
“My freshman year, when the [university] policy was first put in place, we realized that a lot of the really, really dangerous drinking situations don’t happen on campus property, so UW police don’t have jurisdiction there,” Rae said.
Rae said the UW-Madison Police Department has expressed concern for the bill, saying if there are no consequences for minors, then students will not understand the severity of their dangerous decisions.
Police or university consequences often deter students from calling authorities in dangerous situations, according to Rae.
“I truly believe that this bill will help save students’ lives,” Rae said. “I think that they’re going to be much more likely to call [authorities], especially if [the bill] passes as it is, knowing that their friend is also not going to get an underage ticket.”
Rae began working on the bill two years ago but faced delays due to the timing of the state session. She said she is still worried because there are not many days left for the state Assembly and Senate to meet and vote on bills.
Rae said she hopes that since there is a current bill in place at the Capitol, providing criminal immunity from heroin use and any individuals involved in helping those in danger because of heroin use, there is a greater chance the Senate committee will vote to pass this bill on to the state Assembly.
“If we can have one for heroin [and other controlled substances], we can definitely have one for alcohol,” Rae said.
