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Study: Citations for underage drinking down 45 percent

By Mark Hofmann, For The Greene County Messenger 4 min read
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A statewide study has shown a 45 percent decrease in underage drinking citations. (Image source/Paul Michael Hughes)

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The Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts has reported a reduction in underage drinking citations.

Underage drinking citations statewide have decreased in the past five years, according to a recent study, and drug and alcohol commission representatives are giving credit to programs that make teenagers aware of the dangers.

According to a report by the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts, citations for underage drinking in Pennsylvania for those caught consuming, transporting or attempting to purchase any alcoholic beverage has decreased by 45 percent between 2012 to 2016.

The report does not include drunken driving offenses.

Kira Sisk, the director of the Greene County Drug and Alcohol Program, said the program will continue to evaluate programs to ensure the effectiveness within the community as well as analyzing data from surveys and studies.

Greene County’s numbers decreased over the four-year period, starting at 50 citations in 2012, and dropping to 19 in 2016.

Sisk said the program staff works with multiple community resources to address risk factors of underage drinking and drug use while increasing and promoting pro-social activities within the community for adolescents.

That evidence-based process is titled Communities that Care (CTC), which reassesses the risk and protective factors every few years to measure the impact and identify new emerging priorities.

Sisk said the program also offers prevention programming within the community and schools.

“Through a collaborative approach, Communities That Care provides a monthly youth gathering for youth in grades 6 through 12,” Sisk said. “The activities are free for all youth in Greene County.”

Sisk said all programs and strategies they use in Greene County are evidence-based and approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs.

In Fayette County, the number of citations for minors purchasing alcohol in 2012 was at 126. That number went down to 118 in 2013, up to 129 in 2014, steadily decreased to 108 in 2015 and then to 78 in 2016.

In Washington County, where the highest number of citations was recorded in the area, they started with 815 recorded citations in 2012, dropping to 587 citations in 2016.

Tammy Taylor, a prevention supervisor for the Washington County Drug and Alcohol Commission, said they have had a majority of their county schools participating in Pennsylvania Youth Survey as well as the 2015 Core Drug and Alcohol Survey conducted by California University of Pennsylvania, with which Taylor said the commission has partnered.

One of the programs Taylor said that has made a difference is the Responsible Alcohol Management Program (RAMP) for those who sell and serve alcohol to do so responsibly and legally including not selling to minors.

She said around football and prom season, studies have shown parents providing alcohol to minors increase, so the commission addressed the issue by taking part in the Parents Who Host, Lose the Most campaign.

Taylor said the program spreads information through posters and stickers and other communications to parents to show them the dangers and consequences of providing alcohol to underage children.

Taylor said the commission has furthered their reach to younger students with programs that teach refusal skills, as well as peer pressure programs in middle schools. An evidence-based program was put into place in elementary schools that teaches students how the brain works and how alcohol affects decision-making skills and stress management.

“We really do reach youth at that elementary age,” Taylor said. “We go above and beyond with the (school) districts with those programs.”

Taylor said they’re going to continue their programs while reviewing studies and determining how to approach future issues. For instance, she said because of the increased awareness of the opioid epidemic, less attention is given to marijuana, so the commission will keep in mind of a good marijuana education program to remind the youth of the dangers of that drug.

Westmoreland County had 355 reported citations in 2012, 312 in 2013, 355 in 2014, 238 in 2015 and 250 in 2016.

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