Alcohol Responsibility Month (April)

by: Kathleen Rice (D-NY, 4th)

Washington, D.C. - April 16, 2019 - (The Stuff Gazette) -- U.S. Representative Kathleen Rice has introduced H.Res. 305, which designates April as “Alcohol Responsibility Month” and expresses the U.S. House of Representatives’ commitment to support efforts to prevent drunk driving and underage drinking. The resolution is endorsed by the National Chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and the Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility (Responsibility.org). Original cosponsors of Rep. Rice’s resolution include Reps. Carolyn Maloney (NY-12), Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-40), and Donald Payne Jr (NJ-10).

The full text of H.Res. 305 is available here.

In Spring 2015, Rep. Rice received MADD’s Lifetime Achievement Award for her nationally-recognized efforts to combat drunk driving as the district attorney of Nassau County, NY. Dubbed “the state’s toughest DWI prosecutor” by the New York Daily News, Rice secured Long Island’s first DWI-related murder convictions and helped enact state-wide changes in New York’s DWI laws. In 2008, CBS’s 60 Minutes profiled Rice’s work to reduce drunk driving, helping to spur renewed attention to the role of local law enforcement in DWI prevention, prosecution and education.

“Preventing drunk driving requires active collaboration at every level, from law enforcement officials to lawmakers and industry leaders to mothers and fathers, teachers and community activists,” said U.S. Representative Kathleen Rice. “That collaboration is what has allowed us to make so much progress reducing drunk driving fatalities over the past 30 years, and it’s crucial that we continue to work together to keep that progress going and to keep saving lives. This expresses our commitment to be fully engaged in that effort, to promote alcohol responsibility and do all that we can to put an end to drunk driving.”

“MADD and Rep. Rice have worked together for years to help fight drunk driving which continues to be the number one cause of death on the roadways,” said MADD National President Helen Witty. “MADD commends Rep. Rice’s leadership on this issue.”

“Parents are the leading influence on a teen’s decision to drink, or not to drink, alcohol. Alcohol Responsibility Month is a perfect time for parents and caregivers in New York and across the nation to talk to kids about the dangers of underage drinking,” said Chris R. Swonger, president and CEO, Responsibility.org. “We all have a role to play to keep our kids safe and alcohol-free.”