A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING CREATION OF A TASK FORCE TO STUDY THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ELECTRONIC TECHNOLOGY FOR THE PURPOSE OF VERIFYING THE AGE OF PURCHASERS OF ALCOHOL.

     WHEREAS, on a national level, motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death among young people between the ages of fifteen and nineteen; and

     WHEREAS, on a national level, thirty percent of all motor vehicle crashes involving young people that result in injury involve alcohol; and

     WHEREAS, one-third of fatal motor vehicle collisions in New Mexico caused by drivers between the ages of fifteen and twenty are alcohol-related; and

     WHEREAS, binge drinking, which is the consumption of five or more alcoholic drinks within two hours, has increased among New Mexico high school students from twenty-nine percent in 2001 to thirty-five percent in 2003, compared with the national average of twenty-nine percent; and

     WHEREAS, drivers between the ages of fifteen and twenty who are arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol in New Mexico have a mean blood alcohol content of thirteen hundredths; and

     WHEREAS, although drivers between the ages of fifteen and twenty represented only eight and four-tenths percent of licensed drivers in New Mexico in the year 2000, these drivers were involved in eighteen percent of alcohol-related crashes in that year; and

     WHEREAS, there are proportionately more young people under twenty-one years old in New Mexico who drink and drive than persons over twenty-one who drink and drive; and

     WHEREAS, drivers under twenty-one years of age in New Mexico are involved in alcohol-related collisions that cause more injuries since this age group tends to have many occupants in the vehicle; and

     WHEREAS, the number of adolescents who reported having consumed at least one drink of alcohol on school property has doubled in New Mexico from seven percent in 2001 to fourteen percent in 2003; and

     WHEREAS, nineteen percent of New Mexico high school students report drinking and driving as compared with thirteen percent nationwide;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the director of the alcohol and gaming division of the regulation and licensing department and the governor's DWI coordinator be requested to assemble a task force to study and investigate available and emerging electronic technology that verifies the age of each person who purchases or is served alcohol in New Mexico and make recommendations on the implementation of such technology; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force include representatives from the public health division of the department of health, the New Mexico sheriffs and police association, the New Mexico restaurant association, the New Mexico retailers association, the New Mexico hospitality association, the New Mexico grocers association, the New Mexico lodgers association, the independent petroleum marketers association, mothers against drunk driving, the DWI resource center and other interested groups; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the director of the alcohol and gaming division of the regulation and licensing department and the governor's DWI coordinator report to the appropriate interim legislative committee on the status of electronic age verification technology and recommend legislation to facilitate the use of such technology in all businesses that sell or serve alcohol to the public; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the director of the alcohol and gaming division of the regulation and licensing department and the governor's DWI coordinator.