HR1499 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1499 LRB095 22293 KXB 52608 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, College presidents from more than 100 universities are calling on lawmakers across the nation to lower the drinking age from 21 to 18, citing that current law encourages excessive drinking on campuses; and

WHEREAS, The call to lower the drinking age is being used to spark national debate about the drinking age; and

WHEREAS, According to Monitoring the Future, an organization which conducts studies on drug and alcohol use by young people, when the 21-year-old drinking age was effectively mandated by Congress in 1984, 45.4% of college students engaged in binge drinking; and

WHEREAS, By 2006, that figure was 40.2%, and the percentage of students who reported drinking every day fell by more than a quarter; and

WHEREAS, A study by the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) suggests that, since that time, alcohol-related fatalities have dropped 56%; and

WHEREAS, The most dramatic decline in these deaths was among children age 16-20, where crashes dropped by nearly 60% - from 5,224 in 1982 to 2,121 in 2006; and

WHEREAS, A recent study published in Accident Analysis and Prevention finds that laws making it illegal for anyone under the age of 21 to possess or purchase alcohol have led to an 11% drop in alcohol-related fatal car crashes; and

WHEREAS, The study also purports that states with strong laws against the use of fake IDs report 7% fewer drunk-driving deaths among drivers under the age of 21; and

WHEREAS, Bradley University in Peoria has created a strict Comprehensive Alcohol Action Plan that penalizes repeat offenders and requires them to complete an online counseling program; and

WHEREAS, Many colleges across the country are attempting to come up with alternatives to dissuade students from participating in alcohol-related activities; and

WHEREAS, Combating the cultural stigma of today's society remains the greatest challenge in deterring our young people from using alcohol; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge that the legal drinking age in Illinois remain at 21 years of age; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be presented to the Illinois Board of Higher Education and all public and private university presidents in Illinois.