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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSupporting to Reduce Underage Drinking Calling upon the Alcohol Outlets by Bassing Appropriate State LegislationAttest: RESOLUTION 3426 -05 Passed by the Common Council of the City of South Bend, Indiana February 28, 05 20_. Presented by me to the Mayor of the City of South Bend, Indiana March 1, 05 20 Approved and signed by me March 3, U. City Clerk President of Common Council 05 20— . City Clerk RESOLUTION NO. 3 `t A RESOLUTION OF THE COMMON COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SOUTH BEND, INDIANA, PUBLICLY SUPPORTING THE MANY EFFORTS OF THE INDIANA COALITION TO REDUCE UNDERAGE DRINKING ( ICRUD) & THE INDIANA PREVENTION RESOURCE CENTER (IPRC) AND FORMALLY CALLING UPON THE INDIANA STATE LEGISLATURE TO OPPOSE THE EXPANSION OF ALCOHOL OUTLETS BY PASSING APPROPRIATE STATE LEGISLATION 'Wi�emaa, the Common Council of the City of South Bend, Indiana, recognizes that the Indiana Coalition to Reduce Underage Drinking ( ICRUD) is one (1) of twelve (12) coalitions which are part of a national project of the American Medical Association which has determined that alcohol is the leading drug problem among our nation's youth; and llaPikeaa, the South Bend Common Council notes that ICRUD's vision and mission statements are aimed at creating "healthier and safer environments by reducing the accessibility and availability of alcohol to underage persons" so that policies will be changed which "govern the way alcohol is marketed to, sold to, and bought by underage persons" and by educating the public and policymakers about Indiana's underage drinking problems so that policies to reduce youth access to alcohol would be implemented; and WAAe .oww, the South Bend Common Council notes that ICRUD has further reported that "underage drinking is associated with the leading causes of death among youth... including car crashes, murder and suicide" and further reports that "ten million American teenagers drink monthly, eight million drink weekly, and over 500,000 teenagers go on weekly binges of five or more drinks in a row "; and Wiaexn%a , ICRUD has found that "on average, high school students consume 31 million gallons of wine coolers and 102 million gallons of beer each year "; that "9 of 10 Indiana minors say that alcohol is easy to get"; and that annually "Hoosiers pay over $1.3 million in underage drinking costs"; and ° #kmaa, the Common Council notes that the "Orange Ribbon Campaign" runs from February through April of each year which consists of a statewide SADD /Orange Ribbon Youth Celebration of youth gathering in Indianapolis to make people aware of the dangers of underage drinking while stressing the fact that "over 40% of Indiana's high school students say that they drink on a monthly basis and that something needs to be done "; with the Orange Ribbon stressing that today's youth and adults need to take a stand against the effects of underage drinking and impaired driving; and South Bend Alcohol Outlet Resolution Page 2 Offk�,w a, the South Bend Common Council recognizes that the Indiana Prevention Resource Center (IPRC) was established in 1987 to assist in developing prevention programs which deal with alcohol, tobacco and other drugs; and /'!Ilmxeaa, the South Bend Common Council further recognizes that in Indiana, the Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission and the local Alcoholic Beverage Board for each county have specific powers and duties pursuant to Indiana Code § 7.1 -2 -3 -1 et seq., and Indiana Code § 7.1 -2 -4 -1 et seq., respectively; and Wem,ru, the South Bend Common Council believes that based on the statistical information and public health and safety considerations briefly summarized in this resolution, that there is a growing need to prohibit the sale of alcoholic beverages at locations throughout our community which are commonly referred to as gas stations and convenience stores, in order to help preserve and enhance the quality of life in South Bend, Indiana; and Wexn%c , the South Bend Common Council would like the City of South Bend, Indiana, to be counted along with Evansville, Gary, East Chicago, Cedar Lake and Highland which are some of the growing number of Indiana communities calling for gas stations and convenience stores to be prohibited from selling alcoholic beverages. P—lVoat, C�%rve�°' e, 4 etmo4wal,, by the Common Council of the City of South Bend, Indiana, as follows: Section I. The South Bend Common Council believes that there is a serious public safety issue which is threatening the quality of life in the city and throughout the state of Indiana by the current lack of a clear state law definitions for "grocery store" and "supermarket" thereby enabling gas stations and convenience stores to sell beer and wine. Section II. The South Bend Common Council further believes that the Alcoholic Beverage Board of St. Joseph County should investigate this matter and adopt local policies which would prohibit the sale of alcoholic beverages in retail outlets commonly known as gas stations and convenience stores. Section III. The South Bend Common Council calls upon the Indiana General Assembly to address this issue by banning the sale of alcoholic beverages in gas stations and convenience stores, especially since such entities are not currently required to have trained staff to aggressively enforce underage drinking laws. South Bend Alcohol Outlet Resolution Page 3 Section IV . The South Bend Common Council believes that such pro- active measures by the local board which is charged with overseeing regulations in St. Joseph County, and the Indiana General Assembly would be in the best interests of all of the citizens of South Bend, Indiana, and the public health of all Indiana residents. Section V.. Following the adoption of this Resolution, the City Clerk is requested to send certified copies of the same to each of the elected State Representatives and State Senators who represent a portion of the City of South Bend, as well as send certified copies to the members of the Alcoholic Beverage Board of St. Joseph County. Section VI . This Resolution shall be in full force and effect from and after its adoption by the Council and approval by the Mayor. Council Member Erfin Kuspa Member of the Common Council e, CiiTC_1jr_k gUmn4d by me to the Mayor of the City of South Bend, Indiana, on the I SA- day of M&ff`h , 2005, at t .flu o'clock -f—. M. ern, Offi e f the City Clerk ixoved armed by me, the Mayor of the City of South Bend, Indiana, on the 3 r day of 2005, at /c o'clock a . m. PRESENTED 2--24- 0 NOT APPROVED ADnpTM 2-- ZS_ .S- A& /_-Z��_AL__ Stephen J. Luddce, Mayor City of So F=_.�e SOU it) 8F i/fj /4O • \ City of South Bend a� Common Council 1865 . 441 County -City Building . 227 W. Jefferson Blvd South Bend, Indiana 46601 -1830 Charlotte D. Pfeifer February 23, 2005 President (574) 235 -9321 Fax (574) 235 -9173 TDD (574) 235 -5567 http: //w ci.south- bend.in.us Karen L. White Members of the Common Council Vice - President 4h Floor County -City Building South Bend, Indiana 46601 Roland Kelly Chairperson, Committee Re: Resolution Addressing Alcohol Outlets of the Whole Dear Council Members: Derek D. Dieter First District Recently the Council received a letter from Steve Bagbey, the President Charlotte D. Pfeifer of the Evansville Common Council, asking our Common Council to Second District consider adopting a resolution which would be aimed at helping to stop the proliferation of alcohol permits for gas stations and convenience Roland Kelly stores. Third District In yesterday's edition of the South Bend Tribune there was an article Ann Puzzello entitled "Liquor Sales Limit Sought" (copy attached) which noted that the Fourth District City of LaPorte may soon be acting upon a resolution similar to the one adopted by Evansville. David Varner Fifth District Based on the research done to date, there is a great deal of information on Ervin Kuspa the effects of alcohol and its availability. The attached resolution Sixth District highlights some of the information from the Indiana Coalition to Reduce Underage Drinking (ICRUD) and the Indiana Prevention Resource Center Al "Buddy' Kirsits (IPRC) which set forth alarming statistics for the state of Indiana. At Large Additionally, in an article entitled "Actual Causes of Death in the United States, 2000), as reported in the Journal of the American Medical Timothy A. Rouse Association dated March 10, 2004, deaths caused from alcohol was the 3 At Large leading cause in America. Last year, USA Today had an article it its Karen L. White October 7, 2004 edition entitled "Five Binge - Drinking Deaths `Just The At Large Tip of the Iceberg "' (copy attached) which focused upon the "culture of drinking on campuses ". Kathleen Cekanski - Farrand Council Attorney The Indiana Prevention Resource Center statistics for the state of Indiana on binge drinking which is defined as "the consumption of five or more alcoholic drinks at one sitting ", for the 1999 calendar year revealed: 18 % of 8s' graders in Indiana (13.7% national average) 29% of 108i graders in Indiana (24.3% national average) 37% of 12s' graders in Indian a (31.5% national average) Cover Letter for the Resolution Addressing Alcohol Outlets February 23, 2005 Page 2 This same survey for Indiana showed that "statewide, there has been no significant reduction in drinking since 1997 ". I request that the Council review all of the attached information. It provides you with background information which you will need when reviewing the proposed resolution. I request that the resolution be sent to the Council's Health and Public Safety Committee, so that we may discuss this topic in greater detail. I seek your support and look forward to discussing this with you on Monday. I agree with Evansville Council President Bagbey, that we should "close the loop -hole in the law that allows gas stations to get permits under the guise of being grocery stores ". We should take positive and pro- active measures in helping to make our community safer for our residents. Thank you. Sincerely, Council Member Ervin Kuspa 6th District Council Member Attachment Filed In Clerk' office FEB 2 3 2005