Underage drinking continues to be a leading public health problem in the United States. Alcohol use threatens the safe and healthy development of more young people than any other substance—even more than tobacco and illicit drugs! On an average day in 2006, 7,970 teens drank alcohol for the first time, a much higher number than begin smoking or trying illicit drugs. Alcohol use among children and adolescents starts early and increases rapidly with age. As part of a national effort to help communities in their efforts to stop underage drinking, aseries of Town Hall Meetings (THMs) will take place across America during the week of March 31–April 4, 2008. This nationwide effort will support efforts to meet goals from The Surgeon General's Call to Action To Prevent and Reduce Underage Drinking (PDF) and is supported by the Interagency Coordinating Committee for the Prevention of Underage Drinking (ICCPUD).

The Underage Drinking Prevention: Town Hall Meetings are part of a national effort to increase understanding and awareness of underage drinking and its consequences, and to encourage individuals, families, and communities to address the problem. These local Underage Drinking Prevention: Town Hall Meetings will give local communities the opportunity to come together to learn more about the new research on underage drinking and its impact on both individuals and the community, and to discuss how their community can implement the recommendations in The Surgeon General’s Call to Action to prevent underage alcohol use. These Town Hall Meetings are designed to alert and empower the community as well as generate interest from the media.

The Underage Drinking Prevention: Town Hall Meetings are being sponsored by ICCPUD, which consists of the Administration for Children and Families, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Federal Trade Commission, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, Office of the Surgeon General, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy.

Since underage drinking is a critical health and safety issue, it is important to involve representatives from the entire community, including parents, youth, education, substance abuse prevention, other health entities, justice/law enforcement, highway safety, alcohol control, local government, and business.

All participating communities will receive the Community Briefing Prevention Toolkit: Town Hall Meetings and collateral DVD training on how to conduct a Town Hall Meeting, a facilitator’s guide, and information handouts.

Resources for 2008 Town Hall Meetings will be posted here soon.

In the meantime, you can view additional resources and materials that were developed for the 2006 Town Hall Meetings .