If you recently received a new temporary driver's license and are looking to enjoy your favorite alcoholic beverage, then carry an extra picture ID in your wallet.
"On a case-by-case basis, we'll check secondary IDs," said Scott Janco, general manager at Jillian's bar and restaurant in Manchester.
In late May, the state Division of Motor Vehicles began issuing new driver's licenses designed to reduce identity theft.
People renewing or getting a new license are given a temporary 60-day license to use until their permanent ones arrive in the mail.
But the temporary, black-and-white licenses caught many bars and restaurants off-guard, with workers thinking they were bad counterfeits.
"The state didn't let anybody know about it," said April Robbins, assistant general manager at Margaritas.
These temporary driver's licenses have caused some headaches for those holding them.
"We're still in the process of figuring it out," said Robbins, who received word just Friday from corporate headquarters to accept the IDs.
"We'll be looking at them pretty good," said Robbins, who noted one manager rejected one because he wasn't aware the state was issuing them. "They're going to be easy to duplicate one."
Janco said the state notifying businesses "would have been helpful," and said he is only aware of one person at his establishment who tried to use his temporary license. He was asked to provide another ID.
Jim Van Dongen, public information officer for the state Department of Safety, said his department sent out a news release last month alerting the public of the changes.
"Maybe that didn't get down to individual store clerks and servers," he said.
Explaining why the state didn't make temporary licenses as durable as the permanent ones, he said: "You don't want to make a license that's supposed to live for 60 days as strong as something that's going to last for five years."
Meanwhile, licenses for anyone under 21 will have a vertical orientation rather than the traditional horizontal layout to cut down on underage drinking.
The new permanent licenses also will contain more anti-counterfeiting measures, though Van Dongen declined to be specific.
The state issues about 200,000 new and renewed licenses per year. Fees and application procedures will remain the same with the new licenses.
