Businesses

Businesses play a pivotal role in preventing underage alcohol use. Businesses can help by enforcing underage drinking prevention laws, avoiding any marketing that appears targeted at young people, and providing a healthy work environment for employed youth. Use the following Resources and Web Sites to enhance prevention efforts by businesses in your community.

Resources

Preventing Excessive Alcohol Consumption: Enhanced Enforcement of Laws Prohibiting Sales to Minors
This factsheet about preventing excessive alcohol consumption provides general information on laws prohibiting sales to minors, and it includes recommendations and results from a systematic review process on practices and policies related to excessive alcohol consumption. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; January 2011)

Self-Regulation in the Alcohol Industry: Report of the Federal Trade Commission
This publication reports on efforts by the alcohol industry to reduce the likelihood that alcohol advertising will target youth, by its placement or content. It provides data about how industry members allocate promotional dollars, data on compliance with the industry’s advertising placement standard (requiring that at least 70 percent of the audience for advertising consist of adults 21 and older), analysis of external review of advertising complaints, and an update on the “We Don’t Serve Teens” campaign. (Federal Trade Commission; 2008)

Contextual and Other Factors Related to Workplace-Based Substance Abuse Prevention and Early Intervention for Adolescents and Young Adults
This report provides background information on workplace-based substance abuse prevention and early intervention for adolescents and young adults. (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; January 2005)

Alcohol Retailers Can Help Reduce Teen Drinking
Retailers play an essential role in reducing access to alcohol by underage youth. They can take steps to make sure that teens can't buy alcohol from their stores, and they can serve as a source of information to reduce the possibility that alcohol legally sold to an adult will end up in a teenager's hands. This printable Web page recommends practices for retailers to use to meet these goals. (Federal Trade Commission; no date)

Application of Antitrust Principles to Voluntary Industry Efforts to Restrict Marketing to Underage Drinking
Restrictions in industry self-regulatory codes that are reasonably designed to prevent the targeting of alcohol advertising to underage persons are unlikely to violate the antitrust laws. (U.S. Federal Trade Commission; no date)

Web Sites

Alcohol Policy Information System (APIS) Web site
The APIS Web site provides detailed information on 35 alcohol-related policies at the State and Federal levels. Detailed information by State is available for each policy. Click on Highlight on Underage Drinking for an overview of underage drinking in the United States; alcohol policies affecting drinking by those under age 21, including enforcement policies affecting businesses; and prevention resources available through APIS. (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services)

We Don’t Serve Teens
Retailers can take steps to reduce teen drinking by making sure they don’t sell to underage youth. This Web site offers tips for reducing young people’s access to alcohol. (Federal Trade Commission)

Young Workers
This Web site provides tips for keeping teens safe at work, including specific safety rules as well as information about what is required to comply with alcohol- and drug-free workplace programs. (Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of Labor)

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