Minibottles on the ballot

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which contribute to drunken driving.

South Carolina remains the only state in the nation that still requires bars and restaurants to use minibottles when serving liquor. And the state likely pays a price for that odd law: Evidence suggests minibottles contribute to the state's high rate of drunken-driving deaths.

But things may soon change: After years of balking, lawmakers finally have placed a referendum on the Nov. 2 ballot that would rid bars and restaurants of minibottles, allowing bartenders to pour from full-sized bottles.

Voters should approve the measure. South Carolina's strange embrace of the minibottle — the bottle often served on airplanes — gives this Bible-belt state the strongest drinks in the nation. Bartenders generally empty the full contents of a minibottle into a mixed drink. As a result, the beverage contains 1.7 ounces of liquor. Drinks that require more than one liquor will be even more intoxicating.

In every other state in the nation, however, bartenders pour from larger bottles. Those drinks generally contain 1 ounce to 1.25 ounces of alcohol. That means drinks here are about 50 percent stronger than cocktails in other states. It's not hard to detect a connection between South Carolina's potent mixed drinks and our state's high rate — the worst in the nation — of drunken-driving deaths.

Bartenders say also that minibottles prevent them from mixing drinks properly when drinks call for partial portions. Full-sized bottles will allow bartenders to make drinks that are less intoxicating and better-tasting.

Some Democrats objected to the measure to ban minibottles, saying the state could lose some of the $50 million it collects in taxes from minibottles. That's a legitimate concern, but responsible lawmakers should be able to quickly adjust liquor taxes so the state does not suffer a sharp shortfall.

It should be emphasized, of course, that minibottles are not the only cause of the tragically high rate of driving fatalities on South Carolina's roads. A bigger problem is that state lawmakers have refused to adequately fund the state Highway Patrol, which could deter speeders and reckless drivers.

But minibottles certainly do contribute in some measure to highway deaths. For that reason, voters need to get rid of them.