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Exceptions are being included in the rules being written for the enforcement of a new Montana law that mandates that bartenders must be certified.

During the public hearing in Helena, Jon Bennion of the Montana Chamber of Commerce voiced concerns about how the new restrictions will impact one-time events such as wine tastings, microbrew festivals or charitable events where alcohol is served.

To help add clarity, the Department of Revenue modified the language in New Rule II (ARM 42.13.903) to specifically include that volunteers working under existing licenses are required to be trained within 60 days of hire, while those serving and selling under a special permit are exempt from the training requirements (whether they are an employee or a volunteer of a special permit holder) as is outlined in the law.

Other comments regarding the law came from businesses operating less than 100 days a year and they asked for special consideration under the law. But the department declared, while the legislative changes require licensees, employees, and volunteers to complete training within 60 days of hire, the law does not provide for an exception for businesses that operate under 100 days a year.

Commentators representing the Montana Convenience Store Association said that their members don’t have a problem with the concept of training the trainers, but explained there is confusion among some of their larger companies, who have certified people in their organizations to conduct training, and questioned how the new law will affect them. It was pointed out that Holiday Companies has, for years, been proactive in their training and that they do a lot of follow-up and internal checks. They asked the department to provide clarification on who trains the trainer, and what that will look like on their end.

It should be noted, on behalf of the industry, that most establishments serving alcohol have had training programs for their employees as a practical necessity to protect their licensing.

The Department of Revenue rejected the claim that having to submit for approval the training curriculum every two years, as required by the law, was too frequent and imposed an unnecessary burden. The department said it believes a periodic recertification of the training curriculum is important and necessary to ensure it continues to meet the established criteria and remains current with any future legislative changes. Periodic renewal of training programs will also encourage improvements in training methods as experience is gained and data accumulates as to which training methods yield the best results in reducing improper sales and service of alcohol.

Violations of students under each trainer will be used in evaluating the effectiveness of each trainer and their program.

Criticism of using social security numbers to identify trainees resulted in the Department dropping that requirement, but they will continue, as a matter of necessity, to maintain a data base, which was also subject to criticism.