HR864NOV17

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Week Ending November 17, 2006

H.R.864 To provide for programs and activities with respect to the prevention of underage drinking.

Congress looked and found that alcohol consumption by Americans under 21 is increasing to the extent that more youths consume alcohol than tobacco or illegal drugs, that 45.6% of children have used alcohol by eighth grade and 76.6% by end of high school. The use adds up to an annual cost to society of more than $53 billion.

Youth drinking impacts driving awareness, violence, suicide and unprotected sex but may not be something youth can grow out of if started early enough: research shows those who start drinking before age 14 are four times more likely to become alcohol dependent, seven times more likely to be in a drinking related auto crash and more likely to suffer mental or physical damage from alcohol abuse than a person who started drinking at age 21 or after, the bill data concluded.

The bill also noted that many youth can not obtain alcohol without the help of an adult, including parents, but advertising has a significant impact. The alcoholic beverage industry spent nearly $1 billion in 2002 for TV ads of its products and $25 million to deliver the drink responsibly message in advertising, a ratio of 1 responsibility ad for 215 product ads. Alcohol appears in 76% of ‘G’ or ‘PG’ rated movies and 97% of PG-13 movies. 17% of today’s music refers to alcohol with 30% referring to brand names. 71% of prime time TV depicts alcohol use and 77% contain some reference to alcohol.

The price is high-1400 college students die yearly from alcohol-related injuries, 70,000 are victims of alcohol-related sexual assault and 500,000 students are injured under the influence each year.

To solve these problems and more the bill would establish in the Department of Health and Human Services and interagency coordinating committee attended by department heads from all government health-related agencies and the Federal trade Commission. The Committee will report annually to Congress explaining the patterns and consequences of underage drinking, the availability of alcohol to underage people and their exposure to alcohol messages in advertising and entertainment, data on the onset and prevalence of underage drinking and evidence-based best practices to prevent drinking and provide treatment for those who need it.

The report will develop measure with which to determine change. Measures will be developed regarding the degree of strictness of minimum drinking age laws, compliance checks within retail outlets selling alcohol, State mandates of other training on proper selling and serving of alcohol as a condition of employment, State policies regarding Internet sales and home delivery of alcohol, the number of adults targeted by State programs for buying alcohol for minors, State resources and spending to deter underage drinking.

The Secretary of Health and Human Services will continue an ad campaign through the Ad Council

Grants up to $50,000 to “design, test, evaluate and disseminate strategies to maximize the effectiveness of community-wide approaches to preventing and reducing underage drinking” are authorized. The grant recipients will be involved in projects to reduce alcohol use among youth, strengthen collaboration among communities, the Federal, State, local and Tribal Governments, enhance intergovernmental cooperation and coordination, increase citizen participation, disseminate timely information to communities fighting the problem and enhance community initiatives to reduce alcohol use by youth.

Other grants will target binge drinking and underage alcohol abuse at colleges and universities

The bill requires data collected for research. Data collected will reflect short and long-term use of alcohol and abuse on adolescent brain development and other organ systems, comprehensive community-based programs and strategies and statewide systems to prevent underage drinking from early childhood to young adults, improve knowledge of the scope of the problem and an annual assessment of type and quantity of alcoholic beverages consumed by underage drinkers as well as brand preferences and exposure to alcohol advertising.

Finally, the Secretary is directed to test every unnatural death of persons aged 12 to 20 for alcohol involvement, including suicides, homicides and unintentional injuries such as falls, drownings, burns, poisonings and motor vehicle crashes. Other data to be collected includes alcohol related date rapes, violence, risky sexual behavior and prenatal alcohol exposure.

Sponsor: Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA-34^th)

Vote: Passed House 373 to 23 (RC 521) November 14, 2006. Passed Senate by Unanimous Consent December 8, 2006

Cost to the taxpayers: $2 million for 2006. Such sums as may be necessary through 2010. $1 million in 2006 and 2007 for Ad Council program. For grants $5 million 2006 and such sums as necessary for 2007 through 2010. To collect data and investigate the impacts of youth drinking $6 million for 2006 and such sums as necessary for 2007 through 2010.

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MORE INFORMATION

The Congress finds as follows:

(1) Drinking alcohol under the age of 21 is illegal in each of the 50 States and the District of Columbia. Enforcement of current laws and regulations in States and communities, such as minimum age drinking laws, zero tolerance laws, and laws and regulations which restrict availability of alcohol, must supplement other efforts to reduce underage drinking.

(2) Data collected annually by the Department of Health and Human Services shows that alcohol is the most heavily used drug by children in the United States, and that--

(A) more youths consume alcoholic beverages than use tobacco products or illegal drugs;

(B) by the end of the eighth grade, 45.6 percent of children have engaged in alcohol use, and by the end of high school, 76.6 percent have done so; and

(3) Data collected by the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Transportation indicate that alcohol use by youth has many negative consequences, such as immediate risk from acute impairment; traffic fatalities; violence; suicide; and unprotected sex.

(4) Research confirms that the harm caused by underage drinking lasts beyond the underage years. Compared to persons who wait until age 21 or older to start drinking, those who start to drink before age 14 are, as adults, four times more likely to become alcohol dependent; seven times more likely to be in a motor vehicle crash because of drinking; and more likely to suffer mental and physical damage from alcohol abuse.

(5) Alcohol abuse creates long-term risk developmentally and is associated with negative physical impacts on the brain.

(6) Research indicates that adults greatly underestimate the extent of alcohol use by youths, its negative consequences, and its use by their own children. The IOM report concluded that underage drinking cannot be successfully addressed by focusing on youth alone. Ultimately, adults are responsible for young people obtaining alcohol by selling, providing, or otherwise making it available to them. Parents are the most important channel of influence on their children's underage drinking, according to the IOM report, which also recommends a national adult-oriented media campaign.

(7) Research shows that public service health messages, in combination with community-based efforts, can reduce health-damaging behavior. The Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council have undertaken a public health campaign targeted at parents to combat underage alcohol consumption. The Ad Council estimates that, for a typical public health campaign, it receives an average of $28 million per year in free media through its 28,000 media outlets nationwide.

(8) A significant percentage of the total alcohol consumption in the United States each year is by underage youth. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reports that the percentage is over 11 percent.

(9) Youth are exposed to a significant amount of alcohol advertising through a variety of media. Some studies indicate that youth awareness of alcohol advertising correlates to their drinking behavior and beliefs.

(10) According to the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth, in 2002, the alcoholic beverage industry spent $927,900,000 on product advertising on television, and $24,700,000 on television advertising designed to promote the responsible use of alcohol. For every one television ad discouraging underage alcohol use, there were 215 product ads.

(11) Alcohol use occurs in 76 percent of movies rated G or PG and 97 percent of movies rated PG-13. The Federal Trade Commission has recommended restricting paid alcohol beverage promotional placements to films rated R or NC-17.

(12) Youth spend 9 to 11 hours per week listening to music, and 17 percent of all lyrics contain alcohol references; 30 percent of those songs include brand-name mentions.

(13) Studies show that adolescents watch 20 to 27 hours of television each week, and 71 percent of prime-time television episodes depict alcohol use and 77 percent contain some reference to alcohol.

(14) College and university presidents have cited alcohol abuse as the number one health problem on college and university campuses.

(15) According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, two of five college students are binge drinkers; 1,400 college students die each year from alcohol-related injuries, a majority of which involve motor vehicle crashes; more than 70,000 students are victims of alcohol-related sexual assault; and 500,000 students are injured under the influence of alcohol each year.

(16) According to the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth, in 2002, alcohol producers spent a total of $58 million to place 6,251 commercials in college sports programs, and spent $27.7 million advertising during the NCAA men's basketball tournament, which had as many alcohol ads (939) as the Super Bowl, World Series, College Bowl Games and the National Football League's Monday Night Football broadcasts combined (925).

(17) The IOM report recommended that colleges and universities ban alcohol advertising and promotion on campus in order to demonstrate their commitment to discouraging alcohol use among underage students.

(18) According to the Government Accountability Office (`GAO'), the Federal Government spends $1.8 billion annually to combat youth drug use and $71 million to prevent underage alcohol use.

(19) The GAO concluded that there is a lack of reporting about how these funds are specifically expended, inadequate collaboration among the agencies, and no central coordinating group or office to oversee how the funds are expended or to determine the effectiveness of these efforts.

(20) There are at least three major, annual, government funded national surveys in the United States that include underage drinking data: the National Household Survey on Drug Use and Health, Monitoring the Future, and the Youth Risk Behavior Survey. These surveys do not use common indicators to allow for direct comparison of youth alcohol consumption patterns. Analyses of recent years' data do, however, show similar results.

(21) Research shows that school-based and community-based interventions can reduce underage drinking and associated problems, and that positive outcomes can be achieved by combining environmental and institutional change with theory-based health education--a comprehensive, community-based approach.

(22) Studies show that a minority of youth who need treatment for their alcohol problems receive such services. Further, insufficient information exists to properly assist clinicians and other providers in their youth treatment efforts.

It is the sense of the Congress that:

(1) A multi-faceted effort is needed to more successfully address the problem of underage drinking in the United States. A coordinated approach to prevention, intervention, treatment, and research is key to making progress. This Act recognizes the need for a focused national effort, and addresses particulars of the Federal portion of that effort.

(2) States and communities, including colleges and universities, are encouraged to adopt comprehensive prevention approaches, including--

(A) evidence-based screening, programs and curricula;

(B) brief intervention strategies;

(D) environmental changes that limit underage access to alcohol.

(3) Public health and consumer groups have played an important role in drawing the Nation's attention to the health crisis of underage drinking. Working at the Federal, State, and community levels, and motivated by grass-roots support, they have initiated effective prevention programs that have made significant progress in the battle against underage drinking.

(4) The alcohol beverage industry has developed and paid for national education and awareness messages on illegal underage drinking directed to parents as well as consumers generally. According to the industry, it has also supported the training of more than 1.6 million retail employees, community-based prevention programs, point of sale education, and enforcement programs. All of these efforts are aimed at further reducing illegal underage drinking and preventing sales of alcohol to persons under the age of 21. All sectors of the alcohol beverage industry have also voluntarily committed to placing advertisements in broadcast and magazines where at least 70 percent of the audiences are expected to be 21 years of age or older. The industry should continue to monitor and tailor its advertising practices to further limit underage exposure, including the use of independent third party review. The industry should continue and expand evidence-based efforts to prevent underage drinking.

(5) Public health and consumer groups, in collaboration with the alcohol beverage industry, should explore opportunities to reduce underage drinking.

(6) The entertainment industries have a powerful impact on youth, and they should use rating systems and marketing codes to reduce the likelihood that underage audiences will be exposed to movies, recordings, or television programs with unsuitable alcohol content, even if adults are expected to predominate in the viewing or listening audiences.

(7) Objective scientific evidence and data should be generated and made available to the general public and policy makers at the local, state, and national levels to help them make informed decisions, implement judicious policies, and monitor progress in preventing childhood/adolescent alcohol use.

(8) The National Collegiate Athletic Association, its member colleges and universities, and athletic conferences should affirm a commitment to a policy of discouraging alcohol use among underage students and other young fans by ending all alcohol advertising during radio and television broadcasts of collegiate sporting events.

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SEC. 402. GRANTS DIRECTED AT REDUCING HIGHER-EDUCATION ALCOHOL ABUSE.

(a) Authorization of Program- The Secretary shall award grants to eligible entities to enable the entities to reduce the rate of underage alcohol use and binge drinking among students at institutions of higher education.

(b) Applications- An eligible entity that desires to receive a grant under this Act shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information as the Secretary may require. Each application shall include--

(1) a description of how the eligible entity will work to enhance an existing, or where none exists to build a, statewide coalition;

(2) a description of how the eligible entity will target underage students in the State;

(3) a description of how the eligible entity intends to ensure that the statewide coalition is actually implementing the purpose of this Act and moving toward indicators described in section (d);

(4) a list of the members of the statewide coalition or interested parties involved in the work of the eligible entity;

(5) a description of how the eligible entity intends to work with State agencies on substance abuse prevention and education;

(6) the anticipated impact of funds provided under this Act in reducing the rates of underage alcohol use;

(7) outreach strategies, including ways in which the eligible entity proposes to--

(A) reach out to students;

(B) promote the purpose of this Act;

(D) address community norms for underage students regarding alcohol use; and

(8) such additional information as required by the Secretary.

(c) Uses of Funds- Each eligible entity that receives a grant under this section shall use the grant funds to carry out the activities described in such entity's application submitted pursuant to subsection (b).

(d) Accountability- On the date on which the Secretary first publishes a notice in the Federal Register soliciting applications for grants under this section, the Secretary shall include in the notice achievement indicators for the program authorized under this section. The achievement indicators shall be designed--

(1) to measure the impact that the statewide coalitions assisted under this Act are having on the institutions of higher education and the surrounding communities, including changes in the number of alcohol incidents of any kind (including violations, physical assaults, sexual assaults, reports of intimidation, disruptions of school functions, disruptions of student studies, mental health referrals, illnesses, or deaths);

(2) to measure the quality and accessibility of the programs or information offered by the statewide coalitions; and

(3) to provide such other measures of program impact as the Secretary determines appropriate.

(e) Supplement not Supplant- Grant funds provided under this Act shall be used to supplement, and not supplant, Federal and non-Federal funds available for carrying out the activities described in this section.