Mayor Eduardo Martinez
City of Richmond
April 1, 2025
Declaring April 2025 as Alcohol Awareness Month
WHEREAS, an estimated 178,000 people die from alcohol-related causes annually, making alcohol one of the leading preventable causes of death in the United States; and
WHEREAS, excessive, underage drinking is responsible for about 4,000 deaths and more than 220,000 years of potential life lost among people under age 21
each year;
and
WHEREAS, Richmond has 64 active off-sale alcohol licenses; and WHEREAS, Richmond youth to a disproportionate number of off-sale alcohol outlets in their neighborhoods, exposing them to higher amounts of alcohol promotion and advertising; and
WHEREAS, there is evidence that youth exposure to alcohol advertising increases the likelihood and quantity of underage drinking; and WHEREAS, within Contra Costa County, alcohol is a widely used substance among youth, where one in nine 12th-grade students in WCCUSD reported consuming alcohol in the past 30 days; and
WHEREAS, 14% of WCCUSD youth report that students usually get alcohol from adults; and
WHEREAS, research shows that drinking alcohol before the age of 15 increases the likelihood of an individual developing alcohol dependency by five times; and
WHEREAS, Richmond youth have a right to long-term health and safety.
NOW THEREFORE, I, Mayor Eduardo Martinez, and the Richmond City Council do hereby declare April 2025 as Alcohol Awareness Month in the City of Richmond and join with local alcohol prevention efforts to encourage adults to support the well-being of youth by talking with their kids about waiting to use alcohol and refraining from buying or giving alcohol to youth.