[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 864 Engrossed in House (EH)]

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 864

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT



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

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Sober Truth on 
Preventing Underage Drinking Act, or the `STOP Underage Drinking 
Act'''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Definitions.
                       TITLE I--SENSE OF CONGRESS

Sec. 101. Sense of Congress.
 TITLE II--INTERAGENCY COORDINATING COMMITTEE; ANNUAL REPORT ON STATE 
        UNDERAGE DRINKING PREVENTION AND ENFORCEMENT ACTIVITIES

Sec. 201. Interagency coordinating committee on the prevention of 
                            underage drinking.
Sec. 202. Annual report on State underage drinking prevention and 
                            enforcement activities.
Sec. 203. Authorization of appropriations.
                   TITLE III--NATIONAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN

Sec. 301. National media campaign to prevent underage drinking.
                        TITLE IV--INTERVENTIONS

Sec. 401. Community-based coalition enhancement grants to prevent 
                            underage drinking.
Sec. 402. Grants directed at preventing and reducing alcohol abuse at 
                            institutions of higher education.
                      TITLE V--ADDITIONAL RESEARCH

Sec. 501. Additional research on underage drinking.
Sec. 502. Authorization of appropriations.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act:
            (1) The term ``alcohol beverage industry'' means the 
        brewers, vintners, distillers, importers, distributors, and 
        retail or online outlets that sell or serve beer, wine, and 
        distilled spirits.
            (2) The term ``school-based prevention'' means programs, 
        which are institutionalized, and run by staff members or 
        school-designated persons or organizations in any grade of 
        school, kindergarten through 12th grade.
            (3) The term ``youth'' means persons under the age of 21.
            (4) The term ``IOM report'' means the report released in 
        September 2003 by the National Research Council, Institute of 
        Medicine, and entitled ``Reducing Underage Drinking: A 
        Collective Responsibility''.

                       TITLE I--SENSE OF CONGRESS

SEC. 101. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    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, 
        enforcement, 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, as 
        well as Federal support for State activities.
            (2) The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall 
        continue to conduct research and collect data on the short and 
        long-range impact of alcohol use and abuse upon adolescent 
        brain development and other organ systems.
            (3) 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;
                    (C) consistent policy enforcement; and
                    (D) environmental changes that limit underage 
                access to alcohol.
            (4) Public health groups, consumer groups, and the alcohol 
        beverage industry should continue and expand evidence-based 
        efforts to prevent and reduce underage drinking.
            (5) 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.
            (6) 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.
            (7) Alcohol is a unique product and should be regulated 
        differently than other products by the States and Federal 
        Government. States have primary authority to regulate alcohol 
        distribution and sale, and the Federal Government should 
        support and supplement these State efforts. States also have a 
        responsibility to fight youth access to alcohol and reduce 
        underage drinking. Continued State regulation and licensing of 
        the manufacture, importation, sale, distribution, 
        transportation and storage of alcoholic beverages are clearly 
        in the public interest and are critical to promoting 
        responsible consumption, preventing illegal access to alcohol 
        by persons under 21 years of age from commercial and non-
        commercial sources, maintaining industry integrity and an 
        orderly marketplace, and furthering effective State tax 
        collection.

 TITLE II--INTERAGENCY COORDINATING COMMITTEE; ANNUAL REPORT ON STATE 
        UNDERAGE DRINKING PREVENTION AND ENFORCEMENT ACTIVITIES

SEC. 201. INTERAGENCY COORDINATING COMMITTEE ON THE PREVENTION OF 
              UNDERAGE DRINKING.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services, in 
collaboration with the Federal officials specified in subsection (b), 
shall formally establish and enhance the efforts of the interagency 
coordinating committee, that began operating in 2004, focusing on 
underage drinking (referred to in this section as the ``Committee'').
    (b) Other Agencies.--The officials referred to in subsection (a) 
are the Secretary of Education, the Attorney General, the Secretary of 
Transportation, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of 
Defense, the Surgeon General, the Director of the Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention, the Director of the National Institute on 
Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, the Administrator of the Substance Abuse 
and Mental Health Services Administration, the Director of the National 
Institute on Drug Abuse, the Assistant Secretary for Children and 
Families, the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, 
the Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration, the Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and 
Delinquency Prevention, the Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, 
and such other Federal officials as the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services determines to be appropriate.
    (c) Chair.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall serve 
as the chair of the Committee.
    (d) Duties.--The Committee shall guide policy and program 
development across the Federal Government with respect to underage 
drinking, provided, however, that nothing in this Act shall be 
construed as transferring regulatory or program authority from an 
Agency to the Coordinating Committee.
    (e) Consultations.--The Committee shall actively seek the input of 
and shall consult with all appropriate and interested parties, 
including States, public health research and interest groups, 
foundations, and alcohol beverage industry trade associations and 
companies.
    (f) Annual Report.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of Health and Human 
        Services, on behalf of the Committee, shall annually submit to 
        the Congress a report that summarizes--
                    (A) all programs and policies of Federal agencies 
                designed to prevent and reduce underage drinking;
                    (B) the extent of progress in preventing and 
                reducing underage drinking nationally;
                    (C) data that the Secretary shall collect with 
                respect to the information specified in paragraph (2); 
                and
                    (D) such other information regarding underage 
                drinking as the Secretary determines to be appropriate.
            (2) Certain information.--The report under paragraph (1) 
        shall include information on the following:
                    (A) Patterns and consequences of underage drinking 
                as reported in research and surveys such as, but not 
                limited to Monitoring the Future, Youth Risk Behavior 
                Surveillance System, the National Survey on Drug Use 
                and Health, and the Fatality Analysis Reporting System.
                    (B) Measures of the availability of alcohol from 
                commercial and non-commercial sources to underage 
                populations.
                    (C) Measures of the exposure of underage 
                populations to messages regarding alcohol in 
                advertising and the entertainment media as reported by 
                the Federal Trade Commission.
                    (D) Surveillance data, including information on the 
                onset and prevalence of underage drinking, consumption 
                patterns and the means of underage access. The 
                Secretary shall develop a plan to improve the 
                collection, measurement and consistency of reporting 
                Federal underage alcohol data.
                    (E) Any additional findings resulting from research 
                conducted or supported under section 501.
                    (F) Evidence-based best practices to prevent and 
                reduce underage drinking and provide treatment services 
                to those youth who need them.

SEC. 202. ANNUAL REPORT ON STATE UNDERAGE DRINKING PREVENTION AND 
              ENFORCEMENT ACTIVITIES.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services 
(referred to in this section as the ``Secretary'') shall, with input 
and collaboration from other appropriate Federal agencies, States, 
Indian tribes, territories, and public health, consumer, and alcohol 
beverage industry groups, annually issue a report on each State's 
performance in enacting, enforcing, and creating laws, regulations, and 
programs to prevent or reduce underage drinking.
    (b) State Performance Measures.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall develop, in 
        consultation with the Committee established in section 201, a 
        set of measures to be used in preparing the report on best 
        practices.
            (2) Categories.--In developing these measures, the 
        Secretary shall consider categories including, but not limited 
        to:
                    (A) Whether or not the State has comprehensive 
                anti-underage drinking laws such as for the illegal 
                sale, purchase, attempt to purchase, consumption, or 
                possession of alcohol; illegal use of fraudulent ID; 
                illegal furnishing or obtaining of alcohol for an 
                individual under 21 years; the degree of strictness of 
                the penalties for such offenses; and the prevalence of 
                the enforcement of each of these infractions.
                    (B) Whether or not the State has comprehensive 
                liability statutes such as dram shop, social host and 
                ``house party'' laws; and the prevalence of enforcement 
                of each of these infractions.
                    (C) Whether or not the State encourages and 
                conducts comprehensive enforcement efforts at retail 
                outlets, such as random compliance checks and shoulder 
                tap programs; and the number of compliance checks 
                within alcohol retail outlets measured against the 
                number of total alcohol retail outlets in each State; 
                and the results of such checks.
                    (D) Whether or not the State mandates or encourages 
                training on the proper selling and serving of alcohol 
                for all sellers and servers of alcohol as a condition 
                of employment.
                    (E) Whether or not the State has policies and 
                regulations with regard to direct sales to consumers 
                and home delivery of alcoholic beverages.
                    (F) Whether or not the State has programs or laws 
                to deter adults from purchasing alcohol for minors; and 
                the number of adults targeted by these programs.
                    (G) Whether or not the State has programs targeted 
                to youths, parents, and caregivers to deter underage 
                drinking; and the number of individuals served by these 
                programs.
                    (H) Whether or not the State has enacted graduated 
                drivers licenses and the extent of those provisions.
                    (I) The amount that the State invests, per youth 
                capita, on the prevention of underage drinking, further 
                broken down by the amount spent on--
                            (i) compliance check programs in retail 
                        outlets, including providing technology to 
                        prevent and detect the use of false 
                        identification by minors to make alcohol 
                        purchases;
                            (ii) checkpoints and saturation patrols;
                            (iii) community-based, school-based, and 
                        higher-education-based programs to prevent 
                        underage drinking;
                            (iv) underage drinking prevention programs 
                        that target youth within the juvenile justice 
                        and child welfare systems; and
                            (v) other State efforts or programs as 
                        deemed appropriate.

SEC. 203. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this title 
$1,000,000 for fiscal year 2007, and $1,000,000 for each of the fiscal 
years 2008 through 2010.

                   TITLE III--NATIONAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN

SEC. 301. NATIONAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN TO PREVENT UNDERAGE DRINKING.

    (a) Scope of the Campaign.--The Secretary of Health and Human 
Services shall continue to fund and oversee the production, 
broadcasting, and evaluation of the Ad Council's national adult-
oriented media public service campaign.
    (b) Report.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall 
provide a report to the Congress annually detailing the production, 
broadcasting, and evaluation of the campaign referred to in subsection 
(a), and to detail in the report the effectiveness of the campaign in 
reducing underage drinking, the need for and likely effectiveness of an 
expanded adult-oriented media campaign, and the feasibility and the 
likely effectiveness of a national youth-focused media campaign to 
combat underage drinking.
    (c) Consultation Requirement.--In carrying out the media campaign, 
the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall direct the Ad Council 
to consult with interested parties including both the alcohol beverage 
industry and public health and consumer groups. The progress of this 
consultative process is to be covered in the report under subsection 
(b).
    (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section, $1,000,000 for fiscal year 2007 
and $1,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 2010.

                        TITLE IV--INTERVENTIONS

SEC. 401. COMMUNITY-BASED COALITION ENHANCEMENT GRANTS TO PREVENT 
              UNDERAGE DRINKING.

    (a) Authorization of Program.--The Administrator of the Substance 
Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, in consultation with 
the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, shall award 
``enhancement grants'' to eligible entities to design, test, evaluate 
and disseminate effective strategies to maximize the effectiveness of 
community-wide approaches to preventing and reducing underage drinking.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this section are to--
            (1) prevent and reduce alcohol use among youth in 
        communities throughout the United States;
            (2) strengthen collaboration among communities, the Federal 
        Government, and State, local, and tribal governments;
            (3) enhance intergovernmental cooperation and coordination 
        on the issue of alcohol use among youth;
            (4) serve as a catalyst for increased citizen participation 
        and greater collaboration among all sectors and organizations 
        of a community that first demonstrates a long-term commitment 
        to reducing alcohol use among youth;
            (5) disseminate to communities timely information regarding 
        state-of-the-art practices and initiatives that have proven to 
        be effective in preventing and reducing alcohol use among 
        youth; and
            (6) enhance, not supplant, effective local community 
        initiatives for preventing and reducing alcohol use among 
        youth.
    (c) Application.--An eligible entity desiring an enhancement grant 
under this section shall submit an application to the Administrator at 
such time, and in such manner, and accompanied by such information as 
the Administrator may require. Each application shall include--
            (1) a complete description of the entity's current underage 
        alcohol use prevention initiatives and how the grant will 
        appropriately enhance the focus on underage drinking issues; or
            (2) a complete description of the entity's current 
        initiatives, and how it will use this grant to enhance those 
        initiatives by adding a focus on underage drinking prevention.
    (d) 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 (c). Grants under this section shall not exceed $50,000 per 
year and may not exceed four years.
    (e) Supplement Not Supplant.--Grant funds provided under this 
section shall be used to supplement, not supplant, Federal and non-
Federal funds available for carrying out the activities described in 
this section.
    (f) Definitions.--For purposes of this section, the term ``eligible 
entity'' means an organization that is currently receiving or has 
received grant funds under the Drug-Free Communities Act of 1997 (21 
U.S.C. 1521 et seq.).
    (g) Administrative Expenses.--Not more than 6 percent of a grant 
under this section may be expended for administrative expenses.
    (h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2007, 
and $5,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 2010.

SEC. 402. GRANTS DIRECTED AT PREVENTING AND REDUCING ALCOHOL ABUSE AT 
              INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION.

    (a) Authorization of Program.--The Secretary shall award grants to 
eligible entities to enable the entities to prevent and reduce the rate 
of underage alcohol consumption including 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 preventing and reducing the rates of underage alcohol use;
            (7) outreach strategies, including ways in which the 
        eligible entity proposes to--
                    (A) reach out to students and community 
                stakeholders;
                    (B) promote the purpose of this Act;
                    (C) address the range of needs of the students and 
                the surrounding communities; and
                    (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 incidents of any kind in which 
        students have abused alcohol or consumed alcohol while under 
        the age of 21 (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 eligible entity; 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.
    (f) Definitions.--For purposes of this section:
            (1) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means a 
        State, institution of higher education, or nonprofit entity.
            (2) Institution of higher education.--The term 
        ``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given the 
        term in section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
        U.S.C. 1001(a)).
            (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Education.
            (4) State.--The term ``State'' means each of the 50 States, 
        the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
            (5) Statewide coalition.--The term ``statewide coalition'' 
        means a coalition that--
                    (A) includes, but is not limited to--
                            (i) institutions of higher education within 
                        a State; and
                            (ii) a nonprofit group, a community 
                        underage drinking prevention coalition, or 
                        another substance abuse prevention group within 
                        a State; and
                    (B) works toward lowering the alcohol abuse rate by 
                targeting underage students at institutions of higher 
                education throughout the State and in the surrounding 
                communities.
            (6) Surrounding community.--The term ``surrounding 
        community'' means the community--
                    (A) that surrounds an institution of higher 
                education participating in a statewide coalition;
                    (B) where the students from the institution of 
                higher education take part in the community; and
                    (C) where students from the institution of higher 
                education live in off-campus housing.
    (g) Administrative Expenses.--Not more than 5 percent of a grant 
under this section may be expended for administrative expenses.
    (h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2007, 
and $5,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 2010.

                      TITLE V--ADDITIONAL RESEARCH

SEC. 501. ADDITIONAL RESEARCH ON UNDERAGE DRINKING.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall 
collect data on, and conduct or support research on, underage drinking 
with respect to the following:
            (1) Comprehensive community-based programs or strategies 
        and statewide systems to prevent and reduce underage drinking, 
        across the underage years from early childhood to age 21, 
        including programs funded and implemented by government 
        entities, public health interest groups and foundations, and 
        alcohol beverage companies and trade associations.
            (2) Annually obtain and report more precise information 
        than is currently collected on the scope of the underage 
        drinking problem and patterns exhibited in underage alcohol 
        consumption, including improved knowledge of both the problem 
        and progress in preventing, reducing and treating underage 
        drinking; as well as information on the rate of exposure of 
        youth to advertising and other media messages encouraging and 
        discouraging alcohol consumption.
            (3) Compiling information on the involvement of alcohol in 
        unnatural deaths of persons ages 12 to 20 in the United States, 
        including suicides, homicides, and unintentional injuries such 
        as falls, drownings, burns, poisonings, and motor vehicle crash 
        deaths.
    (b) Certain Matters.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services 
shall carry out activities toward the following objectives with respect 
to underage drinking:
            (1) Obtaining new epidemiological data within the National 
        Epidemiological Study on Alcoholism and Related Conditions and 
        other national or targeted surveys that identify alcohol use 
        and attitudes about alcohol use during pre- and early 
        adolescence, including harm caused to self or others as a 
        result of adolescent alcohol use such as violence, date rape, 
        risky sexual behavior, and prenatal alcohol exposure.
            (2) Developing or identifying successful clinical 
        treatments for youth with alcohol problems.
    (c) Peer Review.--Research under section 501 must meet current 
Federal standards for scientific peer review.

SEC. 502. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out section 501 
$6,000,000 for fiscal year 2007, and $6,000,000 for each of the fiscal 
years 2008 through 2010.

            Passed the House of Representatives November 14, 2006.

            Attest:

                                                                 Clerk.
109th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                               H. R. 864

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

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