West Virginia ID scanning laws

No licensee shall sell any alcoholic beverage or nonintoxicating beer to individuals below the age of 21 years. The licensee must verify an individual's age by requiring proof of age from at least one of the following documents certifying the age and depicting the identity of the holder of the document:

The failure to produce satisfactory proof of age with a valid form of identification upon demand requires the licensee to refuse to sell alcoholic beverages to the individual.

A person, firm, corporation, or business entity may not sell, give, or furnish, or cause to be sold, given, or furnished, any tobacco product, in any form, to any person younger than 21 years of age, which shall be verified by a valid driver's license, state identification card, or any valid and unexpired federally issued identification card such as a passport or military identification card:

No licensee shall sell, give, or furnish, or cause to be sold, given, or furnished any tobacco products and accessories, as well as tobacco-derived products and alternative nicotine products or vapor products and accessories, to individuals below the age of 21 years. The licensee must verify an individual's age by requiring proof of age from at least one of the following documents certifying the age and depicting the identity of the holder of the document:

Any person who knowingly distributes or sells hemp-derived cannabinoid product to a person under the age of 21 is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than $5,000, or imprisoned in a state correctional facility for not less than one nor more than five years, or both fined and imprisoned.

W. Va. Code 64-7-1 (175 CSR 2, 4.2)W. Va. Code 60-7-3W. Va. Code 60-3A-25W. Va. Code 16-9A-3175 CSR 12 (vape or smoke shops)21 CFR 1140.14W. Va. Code 19-12E-12

A valid West Virginia driver's license showing that the holder is at least 21 years of age and the photograph on the license matches the holder.

A valid West Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (WV DMV) identification or a valid West Virginia Mobile ID issued by the WV DMV showing that the holder is at least 21 years of age and the photograph on the identification or WV Mobile ID matches the holder.

In order to accept a valid West Virginia Mobile ID, a licensee must download a West Virginia DMV approved reader/verifier application or "APP".

Note, any other digital identification or any other photograph/copy of an identification is not an acceptable form of identification.

A valid driver's license from another state showing that the holder is at least 21 years of age and the photograph on the license matches the holder may be accepted if there is no indication or evidence that the license has been altered.

Any other valid means of satisfactory proof with picture identification showing the holder to be at least 21 years of age and the photograph on the document matches the holder, such as a valid government issued passport, United States military identification, United States VISA documents, or a United States issued permanent resident card.

W. Va. Code 64-7-1 (175 CSR 2, 4.2)W. Va. Code 16-9A-3W. Va. Code 16-9A-7

Any scanner technology may not be used for the collection of personal identifiable information of any purchaser, which includes, but is limited to, drivers license number, social security number or other descriptive information contained on the license, other than the age of the purchaser.

(c) "Scanner technology" includes any device that uses technology intended to control the access of minors to alcohol and tobacco products and which is capable of: (1) Capturing the information from a bar code or magnetic strip on a driver's license or identification card issued by the Division of Motor Vehicles; (2) Producing a declaration of age in print form and storing a record of the event in memory; (3) Producing an audible, visual and printed result; (4) Reporting a history of the events, including the ability to transfer the data for archiving and database development purposes; and (5) Storing at least one thousand events at any time before data is transferred.

The verification that a person is 21 years of age or older shall be recorded by the licensee or an employee of the licensee.

W. Va. Code 60-2-22W. Va. Code 60-7-3

(c) (1) A Class B licensee that: (A) Has installed a transaction scan device on its licensed premises; and (B) Can demonstrate that it requires each employee, servant, or agent to verify the age of any individual to whom nonintoxicating beer or nonintoxicating craft beer is sold, furnished, or given away by the use of the transaction device is not subject to: (i) Any criminal penalties whatsoever, including those set forth in subsection (b) of this section; (ii) any administrative penalties from the commissioner; or (iii) any civil liability whatsoever for the improper sale, furnishing, or giving away of nonintoxicating beer or nonintoxicating craft beer to an individual who is less than 21 years of age by one of his or her employees, servants, or agents.

(2) For purposes of this section, a Class B licensee can demonstrate that it requires each employee, servant, or agent to verify the age of any individual to whom nonintoxicating beer is sold by providing evidence: (A) That it has developed a written policy which requires each employee, servant, or agent to verify the age of each individual to whom nonintoxicating beer will be sold, furnished, or given away; (B) that it has communicated this policy to each employee, servant, or agent; and (C) that it monitors the actions of its employees, servants, or agents regarding the sale, furnishing, or giving away of nonintoxicating beer and that it has taken corrective action for any discovered noncompliance with this policy.

(a) A licensee who: (1) Has installed a transaction scan device in its licensed premises; and (2) Can demonstrate that it requires each employee, servant, or agent to verify the age of any individual to whom liquor is sold, furnished, or given away by the use of the transaction device may not be subject to: (A) Any criminal penalties whatsoever; (B) any administrative penalties from the commissioner; or (C) any civil liability whatsoever for the improper sale, furnishing or giving away of liquor to an individual who is less than twenty-one years of age by one of his or her employees, servants or agents.

(c) For a licensee, his or her servants, agents or employees to sell, furnish or give wine to any person less than 21 years of age, or to a mentally incompetent person or person who is physically incapacitated due to the consumption of alcoholic liquor or the use of drugs: Provided, That the provisions of section §60-3A-25a of this code shall apply to sales of wine;

(c) In determining whether the sale, furnishing, or serving of alcoholic beverages to a person not of legal drinking age is done knowingly, as provided in §60-7-12b(a)(1) of this code, a rebuttable presumption that the alcoholic beverages were not sold, furnished, or served knowingly exists if: (1) The person selling, furnishing, or serving alcoholic beverages has installed a transaction scan device on its licensed premises and can demonstrate that it requires each employee, servant, or agent to verify the age of any individual to whom alcoholic beverages have been furnished; or, (2) The person selling, furnishing, or serving alcoholic beverages can demonstrate that it requires each employee, servant, or agent to verify the age of any individual to whom an alcoholic beverage is sold by providing evidence: (A) That it has developed a written policy which requires each employee, servant, or agent to verify the age of each individual to whom an alcoholic beverage will be sold, furnished, or given away; (B) That it has communicated this policy to each employee, servant, or agent; and (C) That it monitors the actions of its employees, servants, or agents regarding the sale, furnishing, or provision without charge of any alcoholic beverage and that it has taken corrective action for any discovered noncompliance with this policy.

(b) A person charged with a violation of §16-9A-3 of this code, as the result of an inspection under subsection (a) of this section has a complete defense if, at the time the tobacco product was sold, delivered, bartered, furnished, or given, the person carefully checked a driver's license or an identification card issued by this state or another state of the United States, a passport, or a United States armed services identification card presented by the buyer or recipient and acted in good faith and in reliance upon the representation and appearance of the buyer or recipient in the belief that the buyer or recipient was 21 years of age or older.

W. Va. Code 11-16-18W. Va. Code 60-3A-25aW. Va. Code 60-8-20W. Va. Code 60-7-12bW. Va. Code 16-9A-7