42 U.S. Code § 290bb–25b. Programs to reduce underage drinking

(a) Definitions

For purposes of this section:

(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”.

(b) 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 chapter 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.

(c) Interagency coordinating committee; annual report on State underage drinking prevention and enforcement activities

(1) Interagency coordinating committee on the prevention of underage drinking

(A) In general

The Secretary, in collaboration with the Federal officials specified in subparagraph (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 subsection as the “Committee”).

(B) Other agencies

The officials referred to in paragraph (1) 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 Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use, 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 section 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

(i) In general

The Secretary, on behalf of the Committee, shall annually submit to the Congress a report that summarizes—

(I) all programs and policies of Federal agencies designed to prevent and reduce underage drinking;

(II) the extent of progress in preventing and reducing underage drinking nationally;

(III) data that the Secretary shall collect with respect to the information specified in clause (ii); and

(IV) such other information regarding underage drinking as the Secretary determines to be appropriate.

(ii) Certain information

The report under clause (i) shall include information on the following:

(I) 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.

(II) Measures of the availability of alcohol from commercial and non-commercial sources to underage populations.

(III) Measures of the exposure of underage populations to messages regarding alcohol in advertising and the entertainment media as reported by the Federal Trade Commission.

(IV) 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.

(V) Any additional findings resulting from research conducted or supported under subsection (f).

(VI) Evidence-based best practices to prevent and reduce underage drinking and provide treatment services to those youth who need them.

(2) Annual report on state underage drinking prevention and enforcement activities

(A) In general

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

(i) In general

The Secretary shall develop, in consultation with the Committee, a set of measures to be used in preparing the report on best practices.

(ii) Categories

In developing these measures, the Secretary shall consider categories including, but not limited to:

(I) 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.

(II) Whether or not the State has comprehensive liability statutes pertaining to underage access to alcohol such as dram shop, social host, and house party laws, and the prevalence of enforcement of each of these laws.

(III) Whether or not the State encourages and conducts comprehensive enforcement efforts to prevent underage access to alcohol 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 result of such checks.

(IV) Whether or not the State encourages training on the proper selling and serving of alcohol for all sellers and servers of alcohol as a condition of employment.

(V) Whether or not the State has policies and regulations with regard to direct sales to consumers and home delivery of alcoholic beverages.

(VI) 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.

(VII) 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.

(VIII) Whether or not the State has enacted graduated drivers licenses and the extent of those provisions.

(IX) The amount that the State invests, per youth capita, on the prevention of underage drinking, further broken down by the amount spent on—

(aa) compliance check programs in retail outlets, including providing technology to prevent and detect the use of false identification by minors to make alcohol purchases;

(bb) checkpoints and saturation patrols that include the goal of reducing and deterring underage drinking;

(cc) community-based, school-based, and higher-education-based programs to prevent underage drinking;

(dd) underage drinking prevention programs that target youth within the juvenile justice and child welfare systems; and

(ee) other State efforts or programs as deemed appropriate.

(3) Authorization of appropriations

There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection $1,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2018 through 2022.

(d) National media campaign to prevent underage drinking

(1) Scope of the campaign

The Secretary shall continue to fund and oversee the production, broadcasting, and evaluation of the national adult-oriented media public service campaign if the Secretary determines that such campaign is effective in achieving the media campaign’s measurable objectives.

(2) Report

The Secretary shall provide a report to the Congress annually detailing the production, broadcasting, and evaluation of the campaign referred to in paragraph (1), 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.

(3) Consultation requirement

In carrying out the media campaign, the Secretary shall direct the entity carrying out the national adult-oriented media public service campaign 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 paragraph (2).

(4) Authorization of appropriations

There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection, $1,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2018 through 2022.

(e) Interventions

(1) Community-based coalition enhancement grants to prevent underage drinking

(A) Authorization of program

The Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use, in consultation with the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, shall award, if the Assistant Secretary determines that the Department of Health and Human Services is not currently conducting activities that duplicate activities of the type described in this subsection, “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. This subsection is subject to the availability of appropriations.

(B) Purposes

The purposes of this paragraph are to—

(i) prevent and reduce alcohol use among youth in communities throughout the United States;

(ii) strengthen collaboration among communities, the Federal Government, and State, local, and tribal governments;

(iii) enhance intergovernmental cooperation and coordination on the issue of alcohol use among youth;

(iv) 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;

(v) 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

(vi) 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 paragraph shall submit an application to the Assistant Secretary at such time, and in such manner, and accompanied by such information as the Assistant Secretary may require. Each application shall include—

(i) 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

(ii) 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 paragraph shall use the grant funds to carry out the activities described in such entity’s application submitted pursuant to subparagraph (C). Grants under this paragraph shall not exceed $50,000 per year and may not exceed four years.

(E) Supplement not supplant

Grant funds provided under this paragraph shall be used to supplement, not supplant, Federal and non-Federal funds available for carrying out the activities described in this paragraph.

(F) Evaluation

Grants under this paragraph shall be subject to the same evaluation requirements and procedures as the evaluation requirements and procedures imposed on recipients of drug free community grants.

(G) Definitions

For purposes of this paragraph, 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.).

(H) Administrative expenses

Not more than 6 percent of a grant under this paragraph may be expended for administrative expenses.

(I) Authorization of appropriations

There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this paragraph $5,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2018 through 2022.

(2) 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 paragraph 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—

(i) a description of how the eligible entity will work to enhance an existing, or where none exists to build a, statewide coalition;

(ii) a description of how the eligible entity will target underage students in the State;

(iii) a description of how the eligible entity intends to ensure that the statewide coalition is actually implementing the purpose of this section and moving toward indicators described in subparagraph (D);

(iv) a list of the members of the statewide coalition or interested parties involved in the work of the eligible entity;

(v) a description of how the eligible entity intends to work with State agencies on substance abuse prevention and education;

(vi) the anticipated impact of funds provided under this paragraph in preventing and reducing the rates of underage alcohol use;

(vii) outreach strategies, including ways in which the eligible entity proposes to—

(I) reach out to students and community stakeholders;

(II) promote the purpose of this paragraph;

(III) address the range of needs of the students and the surrounding communities; and

(IV) address community norms for underage students regarding alcohol use; and

(viii) such additional information as required by the Secretary.

(C) Uses of funds

Each eligible entity that receives a grant under this paragraph shall use the grant funds to carry out the activities described in such entity’s application submitted pursuant to subparagraph (B).

(D) Accountability

On the date on which the Secretary first publishes a notice in the Federal Register soliciting applications for grants under this paragraph, the Secretary shall include in the notice achievement indicators for the program authorized under this paragraph. The achievement indicators shall be designed—

(i) to measure the impact that the statewide coalitions assisted under this paragraph 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);

(ii) to measure the quality and accessibility of the programs or information offered by the eligible entity; and

(iii) to provide such other measures of program impact as the Secretary determines appropriate.

(E) Supplement not supplant

Grant funds provided under this paragraph shall be used to supplement, and not supplant, Federal and non-Federal funds available for carrying out the activities described in this paragraph.

(F) Definitions

For purposes of this paragraph:

(i) Eligible entity

The term “eligible entity” means a State, institution of higher education, or nonprofit entity.

(ii) Institution of higher education

The term “institution of higher education” has the meaning given the term in section 1001(a) of title 20.

(iii) Secretary

The term “Secretary” means the Secretary of Education.

(iv) State

The term “State” means each of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

(v) Statewide coalition

The term “statewide coalition” means a coalition that—

(I) includes, but is not limited to—

(aa) institutions of higher education within a State; and

(bb) a nonprofit group, a community underage drinking prevention coalition, or another substance abuse prevention group within a State; and

(II) works toward lowering the alcohol abuse rate by targeting underage students at institutions of higher education throughout the State and in the surrounding communities.

(vi) Surrounding community

The term “surrounding community” means the community—

(I) that surrounds an institution of higher education participating in a statewide coalition;

(II) where the students from the institution of higher education take part in the community; and

(III) 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 paragraph may be expended for administrative expenses.

(H) Authorization of appropriations

There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this paragraph $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2007, and $5,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 2010.

(f) Additional research

(1) Additional research on underage drinking

(A) In general

The Secretary shall, subject to the availability of appropriations, collect data, and conduct or support research that is not duplicative of research currently being conducted or supported by the Department of Health and Human Services, on underage drinking, with respect to the following:

(i) 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.

(ii) Annually obtain and report more precise information than is currently collected on the scope of the underage drinking problem and patterns of underage alcohol consumption, including improved knowledge about 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.

(iii) 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 shall carry out activities toward the following objectives with respect to underage drinking:

(i) Obtaining new epidemiological data within the 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.

(ii) Developing or identifying successful clinical treatments for youth with alcohol problems.

(C) Peer review

Research under subparagraph (A) shall meet current Federal standards for scientific peer review.

(2) Authorization of appropriations

There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection $3,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2018 through 2022 [1]

(g) Reducing underage drinking through screening and brief intervention

(1) Grants to pediatric health care providers to reduce underage drinking

The Assistant Secretary may make grants to eligible entities to increase implementation of practices for reducing the prevalence of alcohol use among individuals under the age of 21, including college students.

(2) Purposes

Grants under this subsection shall be made to improve—

(A) screening children and adolescents for alcohol use;

(B) offering brief interventions to children and adolescents to discourage such use;

(C) educating parents about the dangers of, and methods of discouraging, such use;

(D) diagnosing and treating alcohol use disorders; and

(E) referring patients, when necessary, to other appropriate care.

(3) Use of funds

An entity receiving a grant under this subsection may use such funding for the purposes identified in paragraph (2) by—

(A) providing training to health care providers;

(B) disseminating best practices, including culturally and linguistically appropriate best practices, as appropriate, and developing and distributing materials; and

(C) supporting other activities, as determined appropriate by the Assistant Secretary.

(4) Application

To be eligible to receive a grant under this subsection, an entity shall submit an application to the Assistant Secretary at such time, and in such manner, and accompanied by such information as the Assistant Secretary may require. Each application shall include—

(A) a description of the entity;

(B) a description of activities to be completed;

(C) a description of how the services specified in paragraphs (2) and (3) will be carried out and the qualifications for providing such services; and

(D) a timeline for the completion of such activities.

(5) Definitions

For the purpose of this subsection:

(A) Brief intervention

The term “brief intervention” means, after screening a patient, providing the patient with brief advice and other brief motivational enhancement techniques designed to increase the insight of the patient regarding the patient’s alcohol use, and any realized or potential consequences of such use, to effect the desired related behavioral change.

(B) Children and adolescents

The term “children and adolescents” means any person under 21 years of age.

(C) Eligible entity

The term “eligible entity” means an entity consisting of pediatric health care providers and that is qualified to support or provide the activities identified in paragraph (2).

(D) Pediatric health care provider

The term “pediatric health care provider” means a provider of primary health care to individuals under the age of 21 years.

(E) Screening

The term “screening” means using validated patient interview techniques to identify and assess the existence and extent of alcohol use in a patient.

(July 1, 1944, ch. 373, title V, § 519B, as added Pub. L. 106–310, div. B, title XXXI, § 3109, Oct. 17, 2000, 114 Stat. 1182; amended Pub. L. 109–422, § 2, Dec. 20, 2006, 120 Stat. 2890; Pub. L. 114–255, div. B, title VI, § 6001(c), title IX, § 9016, Dec. 13, 2016, 130 Stat. 1203, 1246.)

References in Text

The Drug-Free Communities Act of 1997, referred to in subsec. (e)(1)(G), is Pub. L. 105–20, June 27, 1997, 111 Stat. 224, which is classified principally to subchapter II (§ 1521 et seq.) of chapter 20 of Title 21, Food and Drugs. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title of 1997 Amendment note set out under section 1501 of Title 21 and Tables.

Amendments

2016—Subsec. (c)(1)(B). Pub. L. 114–255, § 6001(c)(1), substituted “Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use” for “Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration”.

Subsec. (c)(3). Pub. L. 114–255, § 9016(1), substituted “each of the fiscal years 2018 through 2022.” for “fiscal year 2007, and $1,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 2010.”

Subsec. (d)(4). Pub. L. 114–255, § 9016(2), substituted “each of the fiscal years 2018 through 2022.” for “fiscal year 2007 and $1,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 2010.”

Subsec. (e)(1)(A). Pub. L. 114–255, § 6001(c), substituted “Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use” for “Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration” and “Assistant Secretary” for “Administrator”.

Subsec. (e)(1)(C). Pub. L. 114–255, § 6001(c)(2), substituted “Assistant Secretary” for “Administrator” in two places.

Subsec. (e)(1)(I). Pub. L. 114–255, § 9016(3), substituted “each of the fiscal years 2018 through 2022.” for “fiscal year 2007, and $5,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 2010.”

Subsec. (f)(2). Pub. L. 114–255, § 9016(4), substituted “$3,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2018 through 2022” for “$6,000,000 for fiscal year 2007, and $6,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 2010.”

Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 114–255, § 9016(5), added subsec. (g).

2006—Pub. L. 109–422 added subsecs. (a) to (f) and struck out former subsecs. (a) to (f), which related, respectively, to the Secretary’s authority to make grants, cooperative agreements, or contracts for programs to prevent underage drinking; eligibility requirements; evaluation; geographical distribution; duration of award; and authorization of appropriations.

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[1]  So in original. A period probably should appear.