Los Angeles City Council Budget & Finance Committee to Vote on Motion to Draft Ordinance Banning Alcohol Ads on L.A. Public Property

MEDIA ADVISORY
For events occurring February 10, 2014



 
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA (February 8, 2014) – Former Massachusetts First Lady Kitty Dukakis will join Alcohol Justice, youth, adults, and community organizations that make up the Coalition to Ban Alcohol Ads on Public Property in Los Angeles (www.NoAlcoholAds.org) at a Los Angeles City Council Budget and Finance Committee hearing Monday, February 10, 2014, where a motion to draft an ordinance to prohibit alcohol ads on city-owned and controlled property will be heard. They will encourage passage of the motion introduced and supported by Council Member Paul Koretz.  If passed, the City Council will then vote to require the City Attorney to write the actual language of the ordinance.

What:        Budget and Finance Committee Hearing

When:        Monday, February 10, 2014 2 p.m.

Where:       Room 1010, Los Angeles City Hall, 200 North Spring St., Los Angeles, CA 90012

Who:           Speakers Include:

Paul Krekorian, Chair Budget and Finance Committee

Mitchell Englander, Committee Member

Paul Koretz, Committee Member

Bob Blumenfield, Committee Member

Mike Bonin, Committee Member

Kitty Dukakis, former Massachusetts First Lady

Jorge Castillo, Advocacy Director, Alcohol Justice

Christine Lee, Youth Services Manager Koreatown Youth and Community Center, Inc.

Sarah Blanch - Project Manager, Institute for Public Strategies

Richard Zaldivar – founder, The Wall – Las Memorias Project

Ruben Rodriguez, Executive Director, Pueblo y Salud, Inc.

Janice Boafo - Program Operations Supervisor, Tarzana Treatment Center

Terry Marquez, Chair, Boyle Heights Stakeholders Association, NW

Jerry Grenard, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, School of Community and Global Health, Claremont Graduate University

Dennis Hathaway, President, Coalition to Ban Billboard Blight

John O. Whitaker, Jr., CDS, CATC II, President, Paso Por Paso

Kevin M. Key, Community Organizer, United Coalition East Prevention Project

Why: 

§ Lawmakers should work to ban alcohol advertising on property that government controls, including public transportation vehicles and street furniture and restrict alcohol advertising in out-of-home locations elsewhere as well

§ Despite claims of economic necessity, revenue from alcohol ads comprises less than 1% of reporting agencies’ operating revenue

§ The City of Los Angeles, which has succeeded in getting alcohol ads off transit vehicles, should now finish the job by banning them from all public property to play a positive role in reducing exposure to alcohol ads to protect youth and reduce alcohol-related harm to all residents and visitors of the city

§ Families and youth utilize city owned and controlled property on a daily basis, such as school buildings, recreation centers, libraries and bus shelters

§ Last December, UCLA, Center for Alcohol Marketing to Youth, & Dr. Jonathan Fielding submitted clear and compelling evidence that alcohol advertising on city owned property encourages youth alcohol consumption which leads to harm

§ The L.A. County Department of Public Health has recommended reducing alcohol advertising in public spaces and in areas commonly seen by minors as a way to help discourage underage drinking

“We are grateful to former Councilmember Alarcon and now Councilmember Koretz for their leadership on this important health and safety issue,” stated Jorge Castillo, Advocacy Director at Alcohol Justice. “We look forward to swift passage of the motion and can almost see the day when residents, visitors and especially our youth are no longer assaulted by alcohol ads on L.A. city-owned property.”

 

Coalition Members include:

American Indian Movement – WEST

Alcohol Justice

Asian American Drug Abuse Program Inc.

Boyle Heights Stakeholders Association

Boyle Heights Coalition for a Safe & Drug Free Community

California Hispanic Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse

Coalition to Ban Billboard Blight

Community Coalition

Institute for Public Strategies

Koreatown Youth & Community Center

Mexican History Foundation

Mothers of East L.A. (MELA)

Personal Involvement Center, Inc.

P3 Partnership for a Positive Pomona

Phoenix House

Pillar of Fire Church

Paso por Paso

Pueblo y Salud

Saving Lives Drug and Alcohol Coalition

Sycamore Grove School

Tarzana Treatment Centers & AWARE Coalition

The Wall – Las Memorias Project

United Coalition East Prevention Project

Woman’s Christian Temperance Union

Women Against Gun Violence

Writers In Treatment

Supporters include:

Michael & Kitty Dukakis, former Massachusetts Governor & First Lady

Boyle Heights Neighborhood Council

California Council on Alcohol Problems

California Alliance for Retired Americans

Center for Living and Learning

County Alcohol and Drug Program Administrators’ Association of California

Crescenta Valley Drug & Alcohol Prevention Coalition

Cri-Help

Day One Pasadena

Dr. J. Benjamin Hardwick

Monsignor John Moretta

NCADD East San Gabriel & Pomona Valleys

Public Citizen

Resurrection Church Neighborhood Watch – Los Angeles

San Fernando Valley Partnership

Venice Neighborhood Council

For More Information go to: www.AlcoholJustice.org and www.NoAlcoholAds.org