BILL NUMBER: ACR 83	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 8, 2014
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 3, 2014

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Buchanan
   (Coauthor: Assembly Member Levine)

                        JANUARY 14, 2014

   Relative to Alcohol Awareness Month.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   ACR 83, as amended, Buchanan. Alcohol Awareness Month.
   This measure would proclaim the month of April 2014 as Alcohol
Awareness Month in California.
   Fiscal committee: no.



   WHEREAS, Alcohol is the most commonly used addictive substance in
the United States; and
   WHEREAS, One in every 12 adults in the United States (17.6 million
people) suffer from alcohol abuse or dependence; and
   WHEREAS, Nationwide, 100,000 persons die each year from
alcohol-related causes, including, but not limited to, drinking and
driving crashes, other accidents, falls, fires, alcohol-related
homicides, and suicides; and
   WHEREAS, Alcohol-related problems cost the United States $224
billion ($746 per person) in lost productivity, absenteeism, health
care costs, crime, and family-related problems; and
   WHEREAS, In 2012, 28 percent of all traffic deaths in California
were a result of drinking and driving; and
   WHEREAS, In 2010, underage drinking in California cost the state
and its citizens $6.8 billion, including medical care and lost time
at work; and
   WHEREAS, Young people who begin drinking before 15 years of age
are four times more likely to develop alcohol dependence than those
who begin drinking at 21 years of age; and
   WHEREAS, Alcohol Justice and Writers in Treatment are coproducing
the REEL Recovery Film Festival--San Francisco Bay Area Edition,
April 24 to 27, 2014, inclusive, to more publicly and effectively
bring alcoholism and addiction out of the closet, reduce the stigma,
and raise public awareness  that it is not a moral failing
but a devastating disease that, like other potentially fatal
diseases, requires specialized treatment, and to encourage public
policy advocacy for the prevention of alcohol and other drug-related
harm  ; and
   WHEREAS, Screening for Mental Health, Inc., will hold National
Alcohol Screening Day (NASD) on April 10, 2014, as an outreach,
education, and screening program that will raise awareness about
alcohol misuse and refers individuals with alcohol problems for
further treatment, and since the inception of NASD in 1999, thousands
of colleges, universities, community-based organizations, and
military installations provide the program to the public each year;
and
   WHEREAS, The National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence,
Inc.  is   sponsors  Alcohol Awareness
Month, held every April  , increases   to
increase  public awareness and understanding aimed at reducing
the stigma associated with alcoholism that too often prevents
individuals and families from seeking help; now, therefore, be it
   Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate
thereof concurring, That the Legislature joins the National Council
on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc. and hereby recognizes April
2014 as Alcohol Awareness Month in California, and calls upon all
citizens, parents, governmental agencies, public and private
institutions, businesses, hospitals, schools, and colleges in
California to support efforts that will reduce stigma, increase
community awareness, and increase support for individuals and
families coping with alcoholism; and be it further
   Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of
this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.