Passaic County Council: Underage Drinking Initiative

Childhood drinking is a serious problem across America. One out of every two 8th graders has tried alcohol. More kids use alcohol than use tobacco or illicit drugs. And more children are killed by alcohol than all illegal drugs combined. In New Jersey, we understand the dangers of childhood drinking and are doing something about it. We're raising awareness about this important issue and asking parents to talk to their children about the dangers of alcohol.

In 2006, the Statewide CD Coalition furthered its initiative in preventing the early first use of alcohol with a variety of strategies. The effectiveness of these strategies was enhanced through trainings provided to local coalitions. These trainings included how to conduct local town hall meetings, advocacy training and how to encourage municipalities to pass effective local ordinances.

One of the strategies implemented was the facilitation of town hall meetings in each county addressing the issue of underage drinking. The town hall meetings were part of the National "Start Talking Before They Start Drinking" campaign - an aggressive initiative established by the federal government to curb and ultimately prevent underage drinking.

The March 28, 2006 events held in each county helped establish local CD Coalitions in each of New Jersey's 21 counties and recruit membership. The 21 events were a great success, attracting large crowds, which included parents, educators and other concerned community members. Following these initial events in each county, a minimum of ten municipalities in each county held additional meetings regarding the issue.

The established local coalitions now meet regularly to discuss and implement unique action plans to address the problem in their respective communities. Some strategies local coalitions have employed include:

keg registration ordinances
petitioning stores to remove drinking games from their shelves
launch of a brief self assessment screening tool for adolescents