A new bill will require places of entertainment, including concert venues and stadiums, to provide attendees with access to free water.
Introduced in February by Rep. Leigh Finke (DFL-St. Paul), the bill requires a venue hosting an event of more than 100 people to provide access to drinking water by offering free bottled water, allowing factory-sealed water bottles to be brought in or letting attendees bring empty water bottles to fill up later.
The bill overcame hurdles like clearly defining a venue, but HF 695 now specifies that places like museums and lectures are not included as it is focused on where water is sold for a profit, Finke said.
The idea for the bill came after several conversations with concert-goers and the lack of free water at festivals over the summer, Finke said.
“Initially, I thought of it as the TSA rule, right? An empty water bottle can go onto an airplane, then it can go into the Timberwolves game,” Finke said. “It can go to these places that are charging a lot of money for water because people shouldn’t have to spend all that money on water.”
Third-year University of Minnesota student Bianca Gutierrez said she recently attended the Kendrick Lamar and SZA concert held at U.S. Bank Stadium on April 19. Gutierrez, who paid $6 for water, said it was “ridiculous” to pay more than $3.
Mandating that concert venues provide water or let attendees bring in their own is a great solution, she said.
“People are jumping and singing at concerts, they need water,” Gutierrez said.
Second-year University student Anamika Kansara said she has seen the high drink prices when going to concert venues and theaters like the Guthrie Theater and Ordway.
Kansara spent $5 at the Guthrie for a Sprite poured into a plastic cup. For water, it can cost even more.
“Someone can have an emergency on the floor (at a concert) and a lot of that can be drawn back to having to pay an extreme amount for water,” Kansara said.
While Target Field already allows attendees to bring an empty water bottle to fill, few fans know that, Finke said. The Minnesota Twins website says a sealed bottle of water of 32 ounces or fewer is allowed, as well as an empty bottle to fill at the stadium.
U.S. Bank Stadium allows sealed water for events, but other venues like Target Center, the Fillmore and First Avenue prohibit water from being brought in.
However, both Kansara and Gutierrez said they did not know that some venues allow outside water or water bottles to be brought in.
“I always google the bag policy before I go, not the water policy, because I always assume it’s a no,” Kansara said.
The bill was added to a larger Commerce Policy and Finance omnibus bill and still needs to pass the Minnesota House of Representatives and Senate.
