Nassau County is getting the message about underage drinking. Over the past few years, the Nassau Alcohol, Crime and Drug Abatement Coalition (NACDAC) has been raising awareness and implementing strategies to reduce underage drinking in the community.
Between 2005 and 2006, data from local law enforcement showed that there had been an increasing amount of alcohol sales to youth, an increase of 165%.
But things have greatly improved. Since 2008, NACDAC has been collaborating with the Fernandina Beach Police Department and ABT to provide alcohol vendor training to outlets that serve and sell alcohol. In addition, regular compliance buys (where underage youth, working with law enforcement, attempt to purchase alcohol) have been effective in reducing the sale of alcohol to minors in our community.
Between October 2008 and December 2009, local businesses showed a success rate of 90.4% for compliance buys. With only 22 out of 229 outlets allowing underage youth to purchase alcohol, it appears as though our efforts are making an impact.
It is our hope that this success continues and that every member of the community — from retail owners and workers to parents – takes responsibility for keeping alcohol out of the hands of our youth.
Respectfully,
Kerrie L. Albert
Project Coordinator, NACDAC
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