Wagenaar A C, Wolfson M
University of Minnesota School of Public Health, Minneapolis 55454-1015.
J Public Health Policy. 1994 Spring;15(1):37-53.
We studied patterns and levels of enforcement of the legal drinking age in the United States. Major findings include: (1) rates of enforcement of the legal drinking age are very low; (2) actions against outlets or adults providing alcohol to youth are particularly rare; (3) two of every thousand occasions of illegal drinking by youth under 21 are estimated to result in an arrest; (4) five of every 100,000 youth drinking occasions are estimated to result in an Alcohol Beverage Control agency action against an alcohol outlet; (5) penalties appear too lenient to deter providers of alcohol; and (6) levels of enforcement of the drinking age vary significantly across states. Recommendations for public policy and enforcement actions include: (1) increased enforcement effort be directed at those who provide alcohol to underage youth; (2) significant increases in the numbers of Alcohol Beverage Control enforcement personnel are needed; (3) one or more officers in each local enforcement agency should be designated as the alcohol control officer; (4) regular sting operations in retail alcohol outlets are needed; (5) all police-attended alcohol-involved incidents should include a record of the source of the alcohol; and (6) effective long-term efforts will require attention to the broader environment that encourages youth drinking.
我们研究了美国法定饮酒年龄的执行模式和水平。主要研究结果包括：（1）法定饮酒年龄的执行率非常低；（2）针对向青少年提供酒精的场所或成年人采取的行动尤为罕见；（3）估计每千起21岁以下青少年非法饮酒事件中有两起会导致被捕；（4）估计每10万次青少年饮酒场合中有五次会导致酒精饮料管制机构对酒类销售场所采取行动；（5）处罚似乎过于宽松，不足以威慑酒类供应商；（6）饮酒年龄的执行水平在各州之间差异很大。对公共政策和执法行动的建议包括：（1）加大对向未成年青少年提供酒精者的执法力度；（2）需要大幅增加酒精饮料管制执法人员的数量；（3）每个地方执法机构应指定一名或多名警官为酒精管制官员；（4）需要对零售酒类场所进行定期突击检查；（5）所有警方介入的涉酒事件都应记录酒精来源；（6）有效的长期努力需要关注鼓励青少年饮酒的更广泛环境。
