SPRINGFIELD – A new law will allow the state to hold parents accountable when they knowingly allow children to consume alcohol in their cars, boats, campers, airplanes and other vehicles. State law already punishes parents who allow children to drink in their homes.

“We don’t allow minors to drink for a reason,” said State Senator Julie Morrison (D-Deerfield), the law’s sponsor. “Inexperienced, intoxicated drivers are a recipe for disaster, and teenagers’ bodies and minds are still maturing. Alcohol can harm their development.”

The state legislature began to crack down on parents who knowingly turn a blind eye to teenagers’ drinking parties after several incidents where drunk teenage drivers were involved in deadly accidents.

Several years ago, in Morrison’s hometown, a group of drunken teenagers were driving back to a party where parents were openly allowing minors to drink. The driver had an accident that killed several of the vehicle’s passengers and shattered countless lives. The accident took place only blocks from Morrison’s house, and she knew some of the affected families.

A 2007 law made it a Class A misdemeanor for parents or guardians to host – or turn a blind eye to – parties where children consume alcohol inside their homes. A 2012 law sponsored by Morrison’s predecessor, Susan Garrett, expanded the prohibition to all land owned by the parents. Senator Morrison’s proposal would expand the law to include campers, trailers, boats, private aircraft and other family property where teens could hold drinking parties.

The law exempts alcohol consumed as part of a religious ceremony. It takes effect Jan. 1, 2015.