Governor’s Prevention Partnership Praises Federal Law Targeting Underage Drinking

HARTFORD — The Connecticut-based Governor’s Prevention Partnership recently heralded the enactment of the first national law to exclusively address the high rates of alcohol use by the nation’s youth.

The Sober Truth on Preventing (STOP) Underage Drinking (HR 864), which President George W. Bush signed earlier this month, promised to increase federal support for Connecticut’s expanded efforts to reducing alcohol consumption among teens and young adults.

“We appreciate the leadership of Senator Dodd and Representative DeLauro in pushing for a targeted national response to underage drinking,” said Jill K. Spineti, acting president for The Governor’s Prevention Partnership, a nonprofit agency devoted to keeping Connecticut’s children safe, successful, and drug-free. “This bill is a significant first step. Alcohol is the most pervasive problem among our youth, yet on the national level it has lacked a single-minded focus. More teenagers and young adults drink alcoholic beverages than smoke cigarettes or take illegal drugs, too often with fatal — and fateful — consequences. Connecticut has made a major commitment to reducing underage drinking. We welcome this additional support.”

STOP calls for a coordinated national policy led by the Secretary of Health and Human Services that includes annual reporting of state prevention and enforcement activities. It authorizes $18 million a year through 2010 for enhanced prevention, enforcement and research, including $5 million a year in grants of up to $50,000 to states and local communities; $5 million annually in grants to institutions of higher learning; $1 million a year for a nationwide media campaign to raise awareness among adults; and $6 million a year for research.

The US Senate and House approved a final version the bill earlier this month. Senator Christopher J. Dodd and Representative Rosa L. DeLauro were original co-sponsors of the measure, while Senator Joseph Lieberman and Representatives Nancy Johnson and Rob Simmons signed on as sponsors.

All of Connecticut’s legislators voted to support the act.

“Children have very difficult challenges on the road to adulthood,” Senator Dodd said. “They shouldn’t have to also navigate the tremendous dangers presented by alcohol. This measure can — for the first time — help provide critically important new efforts to combat underage drinking nationally.”

“We will no longer look the other way when it comes to the increasing problem of underage drinking,” Congresswoman DeLauro said, “but instead will increase resources for drinking prevention coalitions, fund more research to identify alcohol consumption patterns in youth and the role alcohol advertising plays in underage drinking, and provide a national media campaign directed at adults, to make them as aware of the dangers associated with underage drinking. I am delighted to see this measure signed into law.”

Connecticut, led by the state Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, recently embarked on an $11.8 million, federally funded initiative targeting high-risk drinking, particularly among young people. The initiative directly provides $2 million in grants to 29 communities and universities over the next three years to support local prevention and enforcement efforts, including increased compliance checks and party patrols.

Stephen Guest, whose 20-year old daughter died in an alcohol-related incident in 2005, said that a strong national focus on high-risk drinking among teens and college students is greatly needed, but said the law’s effectiveness will depend on the federal government providing greater follow-through than it has with other on-campus drinking laws.

“Part of the bill’s importance is that Congress is making a statement that underage drinking is a problem that the administration needs to address,” said Mr Guest. “Congress has provided the funding and said you have to get serious. We need a broad-based effort to raise awareness and confront current beliefs and behaviors.”

In a 2005 national survey, nearly half — 45 percent — of Connecticut ninth to twelfth graders reported having had at least one drink of alcohol within the past 30 days while 28 percent had engaged in binge drinking (at least five alcohol drinks within a couple of hours) in the past month, according to the Center for Disease Control’s Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System. Twenty-one percent reported having their first alcoholic drink before the age of 13.

Also, in 2005, underage drinking cost the state an estimated $620 million. Traffic crashes and youth violence made up the biggest part of that cost.

National research has found that underage youth account for more than 11 percent of all alcohol consumed each year. Young people who begin drinking before age 14 are four times more likely to become dependent on alcohol and 2½ times more likely to abuse alcohol as adults than those who begin drinking at the age of 21.

Meanwhile, college and university presidents cite alcohol as the number one health problem on their campuses. According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, alcohol use among college students contributes to an estimated 1,700 student deaths, 599,000 unintentional injuries, and 97,000 cases of sexual assault each year.

Yet, according to the Government Accountability Office, the federal government spends $71 million on underage alcohol prevention compared to $1.8 billion to combat youth drug use, although alcohol consumption is more prevalent.

The Governor’s Prevention Partnership is a nonprofit, public-private collaboration providing leadership, support, and resources promoting the positive development of the state’s youth, including underage drinking and drug prevention, mentoring, and safe schools. It is partially funded by DMHAS and the state Office of Policy Management.