STOP-Act

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, we are now half way through September, and young people in Chicago and throughout the nation have started a new school year. As they advance in age and begin to realize their potential, many teens from junior high through the first years of college are confronted with peer pressure and normal curiosity to engage in illegal underage drinking. In spite of great progress in reducing underage drinking, the statistics remain unacceptably high.

For many years, the dedicated staff of the Federal Trade Commission has promoted a consumer education program known as We Don't Serve Teens. It is an effort to inform parents and other adults of the ways in which teens acquire alcohol and the risks they face. The FTC initiative is reinforced by members of the alcohol beverage industry who publicize the information in the media and at retail outlets throughout the nation.

According to survey data compiled for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, many young teens have easy access to alcohol. A study funded by that agency showed that 93.4 percent of adolescents ages 12-14 who drank alcohol in the past month got it for free.

In most cases, adolescents have access to alcohol through family members, from their own homes or homes of friends. The same survey indicates that more than 500,000 youngsters in that 12-14 age group consumed alcohol within the last month. Alcohol consumption at that age can be the indication of other problems. If ignored, it can lead to patterns of abusive drinking and other risky behavior that adversely affect the teenager for a lifetime.

In addition to monitoring the activities and behavior of young teens, illegal alcohol consumption poses a serious risk to high school and younger college students. This past August, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism published guidance titled, Fall Semester: A Time for Parents to Revisit Discussions About College Drinking. As our young people enter their later teenage years, the challenge for parents and the broader community increase. High school and college students have older friends who can purchase alcohol for them. They also have smart phones, cars, and other means to communicate and travel.

We often hear the message, ``If you see something, say something,'' from our homeland security agencies. Parents, friends, neighbors, pastors, and teachers all have different experiences and interactions with teens. We need to enlist all people of good will to say something if they see a teen that they know engaged in underage drinking.

Last year, alcohol was a factor in over 190,000 emergency room visits by persons under the age of 21. Some of those teens died and some suffered traumatic injuries that will permanently change their lives and diminish their potential. Those numbers are every bit as troubling as the national security issues we face. The We Don't Serve Teens web site and materials provide many common sense approaches to limit teen access to alcohol and to recognize the signs that a young person you know may be consuming alcohol illegally.

In addition to supporting the We Don't Serve Teens message, I urge my colleagues to support the H.R. 498, the Sober Truth on Preventing Underage Drinking Act, better known as the STOP Act. It was introduced by Rep. Roybal-Allard again in this Congress. Thanks to her efforts and those of our Republican colleague Frank Wolf, portions of this legislation have been included in continuing resolutions and appropriations bills since 2006.

The STOP Act strengthened our response to the challenge of underage drinking. Seventeen federal agencies now worked through an interagency committee to better coordinate activities to further reduce underage drinking. A number of valuable studies and recommendations have been shared with government officials and civic-minded citizens throughout the nation. I commend our colleagues for their work.

To the men and women in agencies responsible for administering STOP Act research and grants, I ask you to persevere. Your work has saved many lives, and with sustained effort at the federal, state, and community level, we can further reduce underage drinking and its terrible consequences for our families and communities.

To the Commissioners and staff of the Federal Trade Commission, I commend the We Don't Serve Teens initiative and encourage you to sustain it in the future. I would also like to express appreciation for a company in the district I represent, Constellation Brands Beer Division, which promotes the We Don't Serve Teens message in the media and at alcohol beverage retail outlets throughout the greater Chicago area.

Underage drinking is a problem we can all work together to solve. I urge my colleagues and all Americans to utilize the tools prepared by the FTC and other agencies and help further reduce underage drinking and its consequences for our younger citizens.

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