[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 76 (Thursday, May 24, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3622-S3625]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
KEEPING CHILDREN ALCOHOL FREE
Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to have
printed the attached statement in the Congressional Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
Recognizing The Leadership To Keep Children Alcohol Free Foundation
Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, today it is my honor to
recognize the accomplishments of a group of dedicated
volunteers who have devoted extensive time, resources and
energy toward the worthy effort of helping our children avoid
the pitfalls of alcohol dependence and binge drinking. The
Leadership To Keep Children Alcohol Free Foundation is a
unique coalition of current and former Governors' spouses,
Federal agencies, and public and private organizations united
in their goal to prevent the use of alcohol by children
[[Page S3623]]
ages nine to fifteen. It is the only national effort that
focuses on alcohol use in this age group. Childhood drinking
leads to adolescent alcohol abuse, and in my state of North
Dakota, I want to acknowledge that the rate of alcohol abuse
among young people is an ongoing challenge that we must
address. For this reason especially, I am motivated by a
sense of duty and public concern to extend my gratitude to
the volunteers of this Foundation and enter into the
Congressional Record a comprehensive summary of the
accomplishments and impact that this Foundation has achieved
from 2000 to 2012 for the families of my state and our
nation.
I would like to provide some background on how this
Foundation came to be. In partnership with The Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and in response to childhood
drinking as a national public health threat, the National
Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), an
institute of the National Institutes of Health charged with
research on alcohol abuse and its causes, the many medical
and social consequences of heavy drinking, and approaches to
new prevention and treatment, established the Leadership
Initiative in 2000. The initiative would engage First Spouses
in each state, with the underlying assumption that top-level
state leadership could serve as a collective and powerful
force to bring the scope and dangers of early alcohol use to
the public's attention and to mobilize National, State, and
local action to prevent it. And thus, it was launched as a
national initiative in 2000 and subsequently evolved in 2004
as The Leadership To Keep Children Alcohol Free Foundation
with a non-profit, non-partisan membership of over 50 current
and former governors' spouses.
The seamless transition from the Initiative into the
Foundation enabled the work of the Leadership Initiative to
continue without interruption. Its purpose, membership, and
accomplishments remained the same. That is, its purpose is to
support the efforts of current Governor's spouses or their
representatives, both in their states and nationally, to
prevent or reduce underage drinking, especially among the 9
15 year old population.
This multiyear, multimillion-dollar initiative provided
support to participating Governors' spouses, who conveyed the
initiative's messages within their States and nationally
through State policy briefings, outreach to and through the
media, broad distribution of educational materials and public
service announcements, and personal appearances. Both the RWJ
and NIAAA funding ended in 2007.
Leadership membership has always been composed of
Governors' spouses or their designate that are also
prosecutors, judges, educators, business leaders, substance
abuse prevention specialists, and parents. They often act as
a point of contact in their state conveying news about their
state's underage drinking prevention initiatives, and also
taking information back to their constituency. The Leadership
initiative provides members with a source of information to
use as they reach out to these audiences.
At this time, The Leadership Foundation has 26 current
spouses as members, 22 emeritus spouses as members, and 20
Partners of like-minded organizations.
I will now offer to you, Mr. President, the major
accomplishments of The Leadership Foundation form 2000
through 2011. As originally conceptualized, The Leadership to
Keep Children Alcohol Free Foundation has been uniquely
qualified to help move the conversation around underage
drinking to a higher level and broader audience. Its niche
has been its ability to educate and engage policy makers at
all levels. Its non-partisan membership of over 50 current
and former governors' spouses has allowed it to influence the
debate over childhood drinking both nationally and within
states.
It has been remarkably successful in a relatively short
time. Many organizations and experts in the field of
prevention view the Governors' spouses' work on childhood
drinking as key in placing childhood and underage drinking
front and center on the national agenda. Often in
collaboration with national and state partners, The
Leadership Foundation has accomplished our purpose by voicing
concerns in national conversations on related issues;
providing ongoing support of First Spouse underage prevention
activity within their respective states; maintaining timely
contact and delivery of information on underage drinking; and
distributing resources/tools to assist the efforts of First
Spouses in their states.
In the first few years of formation (2000 2005), members of
the Leadership to Keep Children Alcohol Free initiative
worked extensively at the federal level in support of a
federal collaborative effort to address underage drinking.
During that period, members engaged in the following
activities: encouraged Congress to call for the National
Academy of Science's Institute of Medicine Report on Underage
Drinking; worked with several US Surgeon Generals to produce
the Call to Action to Prevent and Reduce Underage Drinking;
provided information related to the STOP Act of 2006;
testified before several Congressional Committees, served as
key partners in April is Alcohol Awareness Month activities
with the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence
(NCADD); served on the Advisory Councils of Substance Abuse
and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Center
for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP), Center for Substance
Abuse Treatment (CSAT), National Institute on Alcoholism and
Alcohol Abuse (NIAAA), Safe and Drug Free Schools and
Communities Act, Drug Free Communities Act, and NIAAA's
Steering Committee for Underage Drinking Research Initiative,
and the board of the National Center on Addiction and
Substance Abuse at Columbia University (CASA); garnered
national media attention in newspapers and magazines; and
worked with the National Attorneys Generals Association's
Youth Access to Alcohol standing committee to convince the
alcohol industry not to advertise to youth.
In addition to the aforementioned national accomplishments
and activities, the Leadership Foundation provides ongoing
service to its membership through such activities as
providing ongoing support of underage drinking prevention
activities by First Spouses within their respective states.
Annually, a one-day seminar is held for Leadership
membership, usually in conjunction with the winter Community
Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) conference. SAMHSA/
CSAP and NABCA have been strong supporters of the Prevention
Days. In 2010, the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention,
National Institute on Alcohol, Abuse and Alcoholism, National
Alcohol Control Beverage Association, Shinnyo-en Foundation,
Wyoming Association of Sheriffs and Chiefs of Police, Paxis
Institute, International Survey Associates/Pride Survey, The
Christopher D. Smithers Foundation Inc., and State Farm
Insurance Company provided financial support for the 10th
anniversary education seminar in Washington DC in February.
At these annual events, speakers are engaged to provide
latest research news on products such as alcohol energy
drinks, coalition creation and maintenance, and minimum
drinking age laws.
In 2008 and 2009, with financial support from SAMHSA, the
Leadership Foundation organized thirteen state visits for the
US Surgeon General to promote his Call to Action to Prevent
and Reduce Underage Drinking. The Leadership Foundation
President, Hope Taft, accompanied the Surgeon General on the
visits at the invitation of the First Spouses, and/or their
designate. At these state visits, First Spouses convened and
encouraged statewide partnerships to address underage
drinking within their respective states through such
activities as the following:
In Hawaii, the Lieutenant Governor James R. ``Duke'' Aiona,
Jr., Co-Chair of Leadership to Keep Children Alcohol Free,
hosted the Surgeon General's visit to Hawaii to promote the
Call to Action. They provided media interviews; visited an
inner-city Honolulu elementary school, where Lt. Governor
Aiona conducted a teach-in, engaging students in an
interactive, lively discussion and delivering a presentation
on Too Smart to Start, a SAMHSA-sponsored underage alcohol
use prevention initiative; met with Hawaii Governor Linda
Lingle to discuss the Call to Action; met with the Hawaii
Partnership to Prevent Underage Drinking (HPPUD); and
attended a Town Hall meeting sponsored by HPPUD at which 120
university researchers, health care providers, Department of
Health officials, policymakers, law enforcement personnel,
educators, business representatives, members of the faith-
based community, youth, and parents were in attendance.
In Maine, the First Lady Karen Baldacci and the Surgeon
General met with the Governor and Maine legislators in the
Senate and House of Representatives, Maine's Attorney
General, and community leaders. The Surgeon General also gave
a keynote address at the annual New England School of
Addiction Studies. As part of Maine's response to the Call to
Action, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of
Substance Abuse (OSA) announced the second phase of a
statewide media campaign, ``Find Out More, Do More,''
targeted to parents.
In Nebraska, the First Lady Sally Ganem and the Surgeon
General provided several speaking engagements with teachers,
parents, students, and community leaders. Follow-up
activities included the following: twenty-one town hall
meetings were held in the spring of 2008; the Nebraska Liquor
Control Commission requested that Nebraska wholesalers limit
pocket-sized liquor containers until an investigative panel
evaluates the product's appeal to youth; the First Lady
raised funds to make a video of the Acting Surgeon General's
Town Hall Meeting for distribution throughout the State;
officials and other stakeholders developed a Nebraska ``call
to action'' on underage drinking; Nebraska Educational
Television (NET) developed a 30-minute documentary on
underage drinking featuring First Lady Sally Ganem; and the
First Lady and University of Nebraska's Coach Bo Pelini
developed PSAs to be shown during every high school sports
events covered by NET. The PSAs are expected to reach more
than 85,000 people with a message about underage drinking.
In New Mexico, the First Lady Barbara Richardson and the
Surgeon General provided a medical round table discussion, a
public forum in Santa Fe about underage drinking, and a
lecture in Albuquerque as part of Governor Bill Richardson's
DWI Research Speaker Series.
In North Carolina, during the Surgeon General's visit, the
First Lady Mary Easley announced the states ``Media Ready''
program, a media literacy substance abuse prevention program
that is taught in middle schools. They also met with State
legislators, policy makers, education leaders, and
representatives from the Governor's Office,
[[Page S3624]]
the judicial system, law enforcement, and health and
substance abuse prevention organizations that work on the
State and local levels to address underage drinking in North
Carolina. In addition, the Surgeon General spoke about the
Call to Action at North Carolina State University's
Millennium Seminar.
In North Dakota, the First Lady Mikey Hoeven and the
Surgeon General provided an address at the 2007 Alcohol and
Substance Abuse Summit in Bismarck and visited a middle
school where the Surgeon General spoke to students.
In Ohio, the First Lady Frances Strickland hosted the
Surgeon General's visit that included an address to college
and university presidents, as well as an address to the
prevention and treatment professionals in Ohio.
In Oklahoma, the Surgeon General spoke at several events
including a town hall meeting at the Oklahoma History Center
in Oklahoma City, and an address at the University of
Oklahoma College of Public Health.
In Oregon, the Surgeon General and the Oregon Attorney
General spoke at a news conference on underage drinking where
the Attorney General announced he was reconstituting a State
underage-drinking task force to examine binge drinking on
college campuses, energy drinks that contain alcohol, and the
possible creation of a driver's license suspension program
for minors caught with alcohol.
In Wyoming, the First Lady Nancy Freudenthal hosted the
Surgeon General's visit that included a news conference at
the annual meeting of the National Prevention Network, a
meeting on Wind River Reservation to discuss underage
drinking, and participation at a Town Hall Meeting on the
Central Wyoming Campus that highlighted not only the Surgeon
General's information but also the prevention efforts under
way across the State. This event also served as the kick-off
meeting for the national Town Halls. In addition, Wyoming
Public Television taped a discussion of underage drinking
issues including the Surgeon General, Wyoming youth involved
in prevention activities, and community members.
In Montana, the First Lady Nancy Schweitzer hosted the
Surgeon General's three-day visit to Montana that included
several speaking engagements with community groups, teens,
and university staff/students; production of a PSA of the
Surgeon General and First Lady; and meeting with the Lt
Governor and the State Interagency Coordinating Council.
Following the Surgeon General's visit, there were twenty-six
town hall meetings in Montana on underage drinking.
In Maryland, the First Lady Katie O'Malley and the Surgeon
General met with the Lt Governor, Attorney General and
several state leaders; gave a press conference; provided
remarks to the House and Senate legislators; gave a keynote
address and roundtable discussion at the Baltimore Health
Department; and attended a meeting with students in a middle
school.
In Rhode Island, the First Lady Suzanne Carcieri hosted the
Surgeon General's visit that included a meeting with Family
Court and Traffic Tribunal Judges with RI Family Court Chief
Judge Jeremiah S. Jeremiah who presented information about
the Family Court's Alcohol Calendar; a press conference on
underage drinking, a meeting with Substance Abuse Task Force
Coordinators, State Room, State House; a Lunch with Governor
and Mrs. Carcieri in the Governor's Personal Office; a
speaking engagement with university presidents, vice
presidents, and researchers, hosted by University of Rhode
Island President Dr. Robert Carothers; a meeting with
Policymakers in Providence, State Room, State House; an
address in both the House of Representatives and Senate; and
a Town Hall Meeting in Woonsocket, RI, City Hall.
Additionally, in 2008 2009, through the generosity of
Motorola, P&G, and Pride Surveys, the Foundation was able to
give stipends to support 25 Town Hall Meetings in member
states across the country to focus community attention on
underage drinking. These Town Hall Meetings were in addition
to the ones funded by SAMHSA/CSAP.
The Leadership also worked with Utah 2009 on a meeting of
medical examiners with NIAAA and CDC to see how the routine
screening for alcohol use in all deaths of persons under the
age of 21 could be actualized.
To accomplish its purpose of supporting First Spouse
underage drinking prevention initiatives, the Leadership
Foundation has produced weekly email updates, an information-
packed website, distribution of opinion editorials, and
presentations at national conferences.
The Weekly Update was supported with funding from NIAAA, a
Scaife Foundation grant in 2009, and their own resources. The
Weekly Update was distributed weekly from 2000 2011 to more
than 1,900 individuals. The Update contained timely
information on latest research, news from states, new
partners, grant and conference information. When a Facebook
page was developed, the Leadership decided to use the social
media network to distribute timely alerts about underage
drinking prevention. The website is also used extensively to
distribute information with an average of 400 new visitors
each week.
As issues pertaining to underage drinking have arisen, The
Leadership Foundation provided Draft Opinion Editorials to
First Spouses. First Spouses were encouraged to shape a final
draft based on their state data and/or opinions for
distribution to their media outlets. The Op Eds were intended
to raise awareness in the early 2000's on childhood/underage
drinking and more recently on specific issues such as the
costs of underage drinking to states, the minimum drinking
age laws, and alcohol energy drinks.
The Leadership Foundation has also been recognized as a
leader in the area of underage drinking prevention. As such,
representatives of the Leadership Foundation have been
invited to present at a variety of national and state
conferences. These included numerous presentations at the
Enforcing Underage Drinking Laws (EUDL) Conference, the Mid-
Year CADCA Institute, NPN/NASADAD conference, and state
conferences such as the Ohio Prevention and Education
Conference.
Since 2000, the Leadership Foundation membership, in
particular Advisory Board members, have provided significant
support at the national level by prompting the development of
important documents such as the Surgeon General's Call to
Action [SAMHSA, NIAAA, SG], and a state-level analysis of
alcohol costs to the state [NM, CDC].
In addition several products were developed and distributed
on-line, at conferences, and in print. All materials are
free, and downloadable from the Foundation's website at
http://www.alcoholfreechildren.org. These have included a
statistical brochure for lay audiences which distills the
most current research findings about early alcohol use and
its effects; a brochure describing three basic strategies for
preventing alcohol use by children, and bookmarks on ``Stay
Smart; Don't Start,'' a video entitled ``Drinking It In,'' a
program for Drug Free Workplace, a discussion guide for
communities on childhood drinking and a parent ``book club''
discussion guide on the book ``Messengers in Denim.''
Several members of the Leadership Foundation have been
recognized for their outstanding efforts through The Racicot
Leadership Award, and The Hope Award.
In 2009, the Leadership Foundation Board of Directors
created the Racicot Award to be named for Theresa Racicot,
first lady emeritus of Montana for her efforts to turn the
Leadership Initiative into the Leadership Foundation in 2006
7. The Award would be given annually to a sitting First
Spouse who had made significant accomplishments in his/her
state on underage drinking prevention and contributed time
and energy into the Leadership Foundation's work. Recipients
of the Racicot Award have been First Lady Mikey Hoeven who
served as co-chair of the Leadership Foundation Board,
started the successful ``Let's Keep Our Kids Alcohol Free''
campaign, raised money for her efforts through Applebee's and
a MOMS cookbook, created the ``I Choose'' CD and served on
the Governor's Prevention Advisory Council on Drugs and
Alcohol during her tenure as First Spouse; Wyoming First Lady
Nancy Freudenthal who worked collaboratively with the Wyoming
Liquor Division, the Mental Health & Substance Abuse Division
of the Wyoming Department of Health, the Wyoming Association
of Sheriffs and Chiefs of Police and parents to develop new
partnerships and programs on underage drinking prevention;
and First Lady Sally Ganem of Nebraska who worked to create
several videos that are still widely used in Nebraska and
available to other states that serve as discussion openers.
In 2011, the Leadership Board of Directors voted at their
10th Anniversary Annual Meeting to create a recognition
program for Emeritus spouses to be named for Hope Taft, first
lady emeritus of Ohio and current president of the
Foundation. Patterned after the annual Racicot Leadership
Award, the Hope Award recipient is selected from nominations
of Leadership members and given to a former governor's spouse
who has stayed involved and committed to the vision of the
Leadership Foundation after leaving the Governor's Residence.
Recipients of the Hope Award have been Hope Taft, First Lady
Emeritus of Ohio who was a leader in underage drinking
prevention in Ohio during her tenure as First Spouse, and who
has represented the Leadership Foundation at the national
level; and Karen Baldacci, First Lady Emeritus of Maine who
has led the recruiting effort, and stayed on as chair of the
Leadership Foundation beyond the normal term.
In 2010, the Leadership Foundation developed a Promise
Partnership Program where agencies with a like-minded mission
were invited to submit an application for becoming a
Leadership partner Promise Partners include the Hepatitis
Foundation; Marin Institute (AlcoholJustice.org); Drug Free
Action Alliance; Lee County Coalition For a Drug Free
Southwest Florida; NABCA; Dr. Parnell Donahue, author of
Messengers in Denim; FACE; Prevention Council of Roanoke
County; Kansas Family Partnership; Outside the Classroom; The
NV Children's Cabinet; 7 Valleys Council on Alcoholism and
Substance Abuse, Inc.; Center for Prevention and Counseling;
Partnership for a Drug Free Community of S. Florida;
Coalition for a Healthy Middletown; Operation Snowball, Inc.;
Hope Council on Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse; Hope Whispers
Community Organization; Southwest Counseling Services; Parent
Resource Center at Families in Action/
In closing, the Leadership Foundation, through its strong
advocacy by First Spouses, have prompted significant state-
level advancements in underage drinking prevention. Many
states have passed laws focused on environmental issues such
as keg registration, server training, social hosting and
graduated licensing. Many members
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have worked in their states to bring awareness to the issue,
changes in policy and coordination in efforts to prevent
childhood drinking. As an example of extensive grassroots
activity in underage drinking, more than 2,000 grassroots
events were held in 2010 to focus on underage drinking.
The combined national initiatives, state focus, and
grassroots activities have contributed to a significant
decline in underage drinking in the United States as
discussed on page 1 2 of this document. In 1991 when the
first Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (YRBS) survey was
administered, 50.8% of youth in grades 9 12 reported current
alcohol use, or use with 30 days prior to the survey. The
latest survey results in 2009 showed that number had dropped
to 41.8%, a statistically significant drop with a p-value of
0.00. That statistical difference means that youth in 1991
were more likely than youth in 2009 to be current drinkers.
The number of states and territories participating in YRBS
survey data collection was fifty-three (53) in 2009; thirty-
six (36) were states in which there was a First Spouse member
of the Leadership Foundation. When looking at the data from
those specific states, all states showed a marked decline in
current alcohol with an average decline of 9.4%. Ten out of
the 36 showed a statistically significant decline in current
youth alcohol users. The front-runners in decline were New
Mexico, Rhode Island and North Dakota, and Utah showed the
lowest rate of current alcohol use among all states in 1991
and 2009 (26.6 to 18.2).
Despite significant headway in the prevention of underage
drinking, current levels are still too high. Researchers
continue to document the importance of protecting the
development of the adolescent brain from the toxic effect of
alcohol. Adolescent alcohol use contributes to a host of
social, emotional, legal, academic, and physical
consequences. Children who begin using alcohol before age 15
are more likely to develop a full-blown addiction and a
lifetime of lost productivity from it. The country's
attention to it must be continued and expanded.
Therefore, the Leadership Foundation has launched a 2012
initiative to create ``virtual statewide coalitions'' with
support from NABCA (National Alcohol Beverage Control Board
Association). The website, with the First Spouse as the
convener, provides a place for all the coalitions in a state
to register along with vital, relevant state departments, and
agencies as well as relevant alcohol reduction and youth
serving agencies. The purpose of this initiative is to
facilitate more effective conversations between state and
local efforts to prevent underage drinking, and to distribute
timely alerts from national agencies to state and local
groups.
Mr. President, I hereby offer these aforementioned
accomplishments of The Leadership To Keep Children Alcohol
Free Foundation, and in so doing, seek to commemorate for
posterity their important work and highlight the value of
protecting our nation's children from the dangers of underage
drinking.
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