Healthy Communities Initiative (HCI), a substance abuse prevention coalition, is strongly opposed to LB330 introduced, at the request of the Liquor Control Commission, by Senator Tyson Larson. This bill, among other items, eliminates mandated off and on-sale alcohol business hours, taxes “hard cider” at the lower rate reserved for beer, allows sale of confiscated alcohol by state liquor regulators, and would allow “powdered” alcohol to be sold.
The changes introduced by Sen. Larson are those which research has found exacerbate alcohol abuse in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention finds the cost of excessive alcohol consumption in the United States reached $223.5 billion dollars by 2006. Three-quarters of that cost, or approximately $165 billion, was related to binge drinking. The costs were attributed to loss in workplace productivity, health care expense, and automobile crashes due to impaired driving. Costs not studied include pain and suffering experienced by the excessive drinker, their friends and family, and their victims. Excessive alcohol consumption affects every citizen by increasing health care costs, costs associated with both intentional injuries (domestic violence, sexual assault, and firearms), unintentional injuries (falls, burns, drowning), unintended pregnancy, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders and alcohol poisoning.
The Community Preventive Services Task Force has recommended evidence-based strategies to prevent excessive drinking. Among the best practice strategies: increasing alcohol excise taxes, which Sen. Larson’s bill contradicts by seeking to lower the tax on “hard cider” beverages. Reducing the days and hours of alcohol sales has also been found to reduce excessive alcohol consumption and the associated social and health costs. Again, Sen. Larson’s bill is contrary to evidence based research and practice.
Powdered alcohol can be used by snorting, and drank after being mixed with water, or ingested in its powdered form. Powdered alcohol is easy to transport, even in large quantities. Powdered alcohol is relatively new, and not even fully marketed throughout the United States. Research on this, the potential physical harms this product may cause, is still incomplete.
People, adults and children both, are our most precious community resource. Sen. Larson’s bill, again noting introduction at the request of the Liquor Control Commission, devalues our resources and demonstrates disrespect of the people of the State of Nebraska.