[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 17 (Wednesday, February 16, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E258]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   STOP UNDERAGE DRINKING LEGISLATION

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, February 16, 2005

  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, underage drinking is a serious national health 
and safety matter. In the United States, alcohol is the primary 
substance abused by young people. It is a major contributor to the 
three leading causes of death among this population--unintentional 
injuries; homicide; and suicide. Young people who start drinking at the 
age of 15 are four times more likely to become alcoholics than those 
who start drinking at 21 and are more likely to try marijuana and 
cocaine.
  Many parents don't realize the enormity of this problem and often 
underestimate the prevalence of alcohol use by teens. More young people 
consume alcoholic beverages than use tobacco or illegal drugs. Sadly, 
by high school graduation, most students have used alcohol.
  It's tough for children to withstand the regular exposure to the 
alcohol industry's advertisements encouraging them to purchase and use 
alcohol. The industry's aggressive marketing of its products has led to 
children seeing regular--often daily--images promoting drinking.
  I am pleased to be joining in a bipartisan effort in both houses of 
Congress to introduce The STOP Underage Drinking Act. This important 
legislation will help establish federal coordination and reporting of 
underage drinking information and coordinate the efforts and expertise. 
It also mandates annual report to Congress on efforts to combat 
underage drinking and an annual ``report card'' to track State efforts.
  The legislation also authorizes a national media campaign to fight 
underage drinking and would provide additional resources to prevent 
underage drinking through the Drug Free Communities program. It would 
create a new program to providing competitive grants to states, non-
profit entities, and institutions of higher education to create state-
wide coalitions to prevent underage drinking and alcohol abuse by 
college and university students.
  Finally, it would expand research and data compilation on the 
prevalence of underage drinking, specifically: reporting on the types 
and brands of alcohol that kids consume and the impact of underage 
drinking upon adolescent brain development.
  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to be a part of this effort to draw 
attention to this important national problem that is confronting our 
young people. I look forward to continuing this work with my colleagues 
on both sides of the aisle and on both sides of the Capitol to see that 
this important legislation is enacted.

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