Vermont's Enforcing Underage Drinking Laws Program

OJJDP's State and Community Development Awards program was established to provide grants and cooperative agreements to organizations that OJJDP has selected for funds in prior years. This program has been authorized by an Act appropriating funds for the Department of Justice.

The goal of the Enforcing Underage Drinking Laws (EUDL) Program is to support and enhance State efforts, in cooperation with local jurisdictions, to enforce laws prohibiting the sale of alcoholic beverages, or the consumption of alcoholic beverages by minors. For the purpose of the program, minors are defined as individuals under 21 years of age.

Vermont's Department of Health, Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Programs (ADAP) proposes to utilize funds to leverage community change in enforcing underage drinking laws. Funds will support 2 or 3 regional Stop Teen Alcohol Risk Teams [START] community grants to enhance local education and enforcement efforts through pro-active and re-active patrols in high need counties. Efforts to foster connections between START, community coalitions and other local prevention groups have resulted in greater and more effective collaboration toward the reduction of underage drinking through the changing of community norms and other environmental factors. The State will continue to support the shop owners in Vermont with an ID verification phone line. Lastly, EUDL funds will be used in combination with other ADAP funds to enhance ParentUpVT.org and use social media to advertise the enhanced website. Comprehensive approaches such as this have proven effective, as evidenced by reductions in youth alcohol use in Vermont over the last 15 years. NCA/NCF