Ask a Stoner: Why Don't Dispensaries Accept Vertical IDs?

Westword

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Dear Stoner: My niece was turned away from a dispensary because her Wisconsin ID was vertical. She’d renewed her driver’s license right before turning 21 in May, so she doesn’t have a horizontal ID, but even though her ID was valid, the dispensary said she’d need a passport, too. What's the deal?
Bucky

Dear Bucky: Your niece needs to try a different dispensary. Colorado law mandates that Colorado residents 21 and up must have a horizontal ID, so some dispensaries and bars won’t allow anybody without one inside, even if the ID is valid or from another state, to avoid any risk of serving underage customers. This is a store policy, not a law, but that policy is becoming more common.

Most Colorado dispensaries only accept vertical IDs.

Colorado Department of Motor Vehicles

You’d think all those dispensary ID scanners and security guards would be able to spot an underage or fake ID, but a lot of stores would rather not deal with it. To be fair, though, alcohol establishments have been turning away vertical IDs for a while now. Anyone with a vertical ID who wants to get into a Colorado dispensary should instead take along a valid passport or military ID, if they have one, or risk being turned away.

Send questions to [email protected].