[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 21 (Thursday, March 5, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1461-S1462]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 SENATE RESOLUTION--192--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE TO CHANGE 
         THE CULTURE OF ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION ON COLLEGE CAMPUSES

  Mr. BIDEN submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
the Committee on Labor and Human Resources:

                              S. Res. 192

         
       Whereas many college presidents rank alcohol abuse as the 
     number one problem on campus;
       Whereas alcohol is a factor in the 3 leading causes of 
     death for individuals aged 15 through 24 (accidents, 
     homicides, and suicides);
       Whereas more than any other group, college students tend to 
     consume large numbers of drinks in rapid succession with the 
     intention of becoming drunk;
       Whereas 84 percent of college students report drinking 
     alcohol during the school year, with 44 percent of all 
     college students qualifying as binge drinkers and 19 percent 
     of all college students qualifying as frequent binge 
     drinkers;
       Whereas alcohol is involved in a large percentage of all 
     campus rapes, violent crimes, student suicides, and 
     fraternity hazing accidents;
       Whereas heavy alcohol consumption on college campuses can 
     result in drunk driving crashes, hospitalization for alcohol 
     overdoses, trouble with police, injury, missed classes, and 
     academic failure;
       Whereas the second-hand effects of student alcohol 
     consumption range from assault, property damage, and unwanted 
     sexual advances, to interruptions in study or sleep, or 
     having to ``babysit'' another student who drank too much; and
       Whereas campus binge drinking can also lead to the death of 
     our Nation's young and promising students: Now, therefore, be 
     it
       Resolved,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This resolution may be cited as ``The Collegiate Initiative 
     To Reduce Binge Drinking Resolution''.

     SEC. 2. SENSE OF THE SENATE.

       It is the sense of the Senate that, in an effort to change 
     the culture of alcohol consumption on college campuses, all 
     institutions of higher education should carry out the 
     following:

[[Page S1462]]

       (1) The president of the institution should appoint a task 
     force consisting of school administrators, faculty, students, 
     Greek system representatives, and others to conduct a full 
     examination of student and academic life at the institution. 
     The task force should make recommendations for a broad range 
     of policy and program changes that would serve to reduce 
     alcohol and other drug-related problems. The institution 
     should provide resources to assist the task force in 
     promoting the campus policies and proposed environmental 
     changes that have been identified.
       (2) The institution should provide maximum opportunities 
     for students to live in an alcohol-free environment and to 
     engage in stimulating, alcohol-free recreational and leisure 
     activities.
       (3) The institution should enforce a ``zero tolerance'' 
     policy on the illegal consumption of alcohol by its students 
     and should take steps to reduce the opportunities for 
     students, faculty, staff, and alumni to legally consume 
     alcohol on campus.
       (4) The institution should vigorously enforce its code of 
     disciplinary sanctions for those who violate campus alcohol 
     policies. Students with alcohol or other drug-related 
     problems should be referred to an on-campus counseling 
     program.
       (5) The institution should adopt a policy of eliminating 
     alcoholic beverage-related sponsorship of on-campus 
     activities. The institution should adopt policies limiting 
     the advertisement and promotion of alcoholic beverages on 
     campus.
       (6) Recognizing that school-centered policies on alcohol 
     will be unsuccessful if local businesses sell alcohol to 
     underage or intoxicated students, the institution should form 
     a ``Town/Gown'' alliance with community leaders. That 
     alliance should encourage local commercial establishments 
     that promote or sell alcoholic beverages to curtail illegal 
     student access to alcohol and adopt responsible alcohol 
     marketing and service practices.

  Mr. BIDEN. Mr. President, over the last two days we have been 
debating in the Senate various amendments aimed at curbing drunk 
driving--a devastating byproduct of alcohol consumption. Today, I want 
to raise another alcohol-related issue--that of drinking on college 
campuses.
  In recent years, we have all heard the stories about college students 
who are dying because of alcohol. A drunk student falls out of a dorm 
window in Virginia. Students from Massachusetts to Mississippi die of 
alcohol poisoning--drinking so much so fast that the alcohol literally 
kills them. In fact, so far this academic year, there have been at 
least 17 college students who have died in binge drinking incidents.
  Unfortunately, this is not an isolated minority of college students. 
According to surveys, 44 percent of college students are binge 
drinkers, and nearly one in every five college students is a frequent 
binge drinker. This is not what parents expect when they send their 
kids off to college.
  It is time for the culture on college campuses to change.
  So, today, I am submitting a sense-of-the-Senate resolution calling 
on college and university administrators to carry out activities to 
reduce alcohol consumption on college campuses. This resolution--the 
Collegiate Initiative to Reduce Binge Drinking--was first submitted in 
the other body by Mr. Kennedy of Massachusetts. I want to commend him 
for his initiative, and thank him for allowing me to join in this 
effort.
  Specifically, the resolution calls on colleges and universities to 
appoint a task force to establish a policy on reducing alcohol and 
other drug-related problems; provide students with the opportunity to 
live in an alcohol-free environment; enforce a zero tolerance policy on 
the consumption of alcohol by minors; and eliminate alcoholic beverage-
related sponsorship of on-campus activities. It also encourages 
colleges to work with local officials in the town in which they are 
located.
  These activities are very similar to what is happening now at my 
state's largest college--the University of Delaware--which, according 
to a study by Harvard University, has had a binge drinking rate 50 
percent higher than the national average. But, Mr. President, under the 
direction of the University's President, David P. Roselle--along with a 
grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation--the University is 
actively seeking to reduce this rate and to reduce alcohol consumption 
on campus. So far, it appears to be working. In just one year--from 
October 1996 to October 1997--there were 30 fewer alcohol-related 
incidents on campus.
  The lesson is that if we take the problem seriously and seriously 
address the problem, we can make a difference. The lives of students 
can be saved. I ask my colleagues to join me in encouraging college 
administrators to step up to the challenge--before the problem gets any 
worse.

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