J O I N T R E S O L U T I O N
ENCOURAGING THE DEPARTMENT OF MENTAL HEALTH, RETARDATION AND HOSPITALS TO WORK WITH OTHER AGENCIES IN EXAMINING THE PROBLEM OF TEEN USE OF ALCOHOL AND DRUGS WHILE DRIVING OR RIDING IN A MOTOR VEHICLE
WHEREAS, Teenagers with their ready access to motor vehicles, have become increasingly mobile; and
WHEREAS, In 1998, one thousand six hundred and ninety-five (1,695) fifteen (15) - to nineteen (19) - year old teens were killed in alcohol-related traffic accidents nationwide; and
WHEREAS, In July 1998 a project called Aluminum Anonymous surveyed one hundred (100) miles of Rhode Island roadsides for alcohol beverage containers, from Providence to Hopkinton and from Greene to Chepachet to Woonsocket; and
WHEREAS, The surveyors estimated that an average of one thousand one hundred (1,100) beer cans and beer bottles a mile are thrown on the highway annually; and
WHEREAS, Aluminum Anonymous interviewed professionals working with teenagers and adults in alcohol and drug-related matters who collectively estimated that approximately fifty percent (50%) of the discarded containers came from teenagers; and
WHEREAS, In spite of a January 2001 national survey of teenagers by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism that included questions on drinking and drug use while driving and riding, too little is known about teenage alcohol and drug behavior after the car door closes; and
WHEREAS, A January 2001 report by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse entitled "Shoveling Up: Impact of Substance Abuse on State Budgets" states that most of the money that Rhode Island dedicates to substance abuse problems is spent on cleaning up the wreckage caused by addiction and substance abuse, rather than on prevention and treatment; and
WHEREAS, Not only does in-vehicle alcohol use impact the health of the state's teenagers, it also impacts the environment, contributing to the problem of roadside litter; now therefore be it
RESOLVED, That this General Assembly of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations hereby encourages the Department of Mental Health, Retardation and Hospitals to work with the Department of Transportation and the Department of the Attorney General in examining the problem of teenage in-vehicle drinking and drug use by:
(1) assembling the information that is known about this behavior, its causes, and its prevalence; and
(2) identifying gaps in knowledge, state law, policy, agency programs, and agency interaction; and be it further
RESOLVED, That the Department of Mental Health, Retardation and Hospitals report to the Joint Committee on Highway Safety, if appropriate, with any findings, recommendations, suggested legislation, or plans for incorporating prevention of teenage in-vehicle drinking and drug use into the scope of the state's overall prevention strategies; and be it further
RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and he hereby is authorized and directed to transmit a duly certified copy of this resolution to the director of the Department of Mental Health, Retardation and Hospitals.