Responsible Beverage Service

Responsible Beverage Service (RBS) is a community-based approach to reducing risks associated with retail alcohol environments. RBS has three essential elements: policy development, merchant education, and partnerships with law enforcement. The goal is to reduce alcohol-related problems by holding merchants accountable if they violate state and local laws, such as sales to minors and intoxicated patrons. Good RBS means that bars check IDs, refuse service to drunk patrons, and the community gets involved to ensure safe alcohol service and sales.

Research shows that simply training servers and sellers is not enough to create long-term change; a successful RBS program must be rooted in the community. This means conducting an assessment to find out which outlets are problematic. From this assessment comes a training program that is tailored to the community's concerns: off-sale (stores), on-sale (bars, restaurants), or special events (fairs, festivals).

Server training is part of RBS, but it must be connected to house policies that clearly define how alcohol is sold. Key management personnel must endorse these policies and everyone, from the doorman to the owner, must comply with local and state laws.

Finally, consistent enforcement by local law enforcement supports the community norm that those who sell and serve alcohol must do so in a way that does not contribute to community problems. For more information about RBS visit the Alcohol Epidemiology Program.