New York City Council     Members
  • Filed (End of Session)

History

City Council
Filed (End of Session)
City Council
Referred to Comm by Council
City Council
Introduced by Council

Res. No. 922

 

Resolution calling on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the Governor, and the State Legislature to prohibit advertisements for alcoholic beverages on subways, buses, and other New York City Transit property

 

By Council Members Dromm, Cabrera, Chin, Cohen, Constantinides, Cornegy, Koo, Koslowitz, Mendez, Rose, Vacca, Rodriguez, Barron, Torres, Deutsch, King, Vallone, Garodnick, Levine, Johnson, Eugene, Menchaca, Palma, Maisel, Gibson, Rosenthal and Borelli

 

Whereas, The facilities of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) are a public accommodation, essentially rendering transit riders a captive audience to advertisements accepted by the MTA; and

Whereas, Within New York City, the MTA provides transportation service to more than 670,000 students of New York City's public and private schools, thereby exposing children and youth involuntarily to advertising accepted by the MTA; and

Whereas, Thousands of other New York City children and youth travel to recreational and educational activities on public transit trips subsidized by the Department of Youth and Community Development through its Complimentary Subway Transportation Program; and

Whereas, The sale of alcoholic beverages to individuals under age 21 is illegal in New York, and the New York City Police Department has pledged to partner with the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) to prevent underage drinking by focusing resources on the enforcement of relevant liquor laws; and

Whereas, An undercover investigation by the New York State Liquor Authority-funded by a grant from DOHMH-found that 58% of alcohol retailers throughout the five boroughs illegally sold alcohol to underage decoys; and

Whereas, According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, underage drinking is a major threat to the health and well-being of New York City children and youth, contributing to the largest causes of death among that age group (unintentional injury, homicide, and suicide) as well as unplanned pregnancies, academic failure, and many other health and social problems; and

Whereas, Neurological research from a host of academic and scientific institutions has found that underage binge drinking can cause structural abnormalities in the adolescent brain, leading to long-term memory problems and other cognitive deficits extending into adulthood; and

Whereas, According to DOHMH, the costs related to underage drinking (healthcare, law enforcement, social services, etc.) are estimated to exceed $1 billion per year in New York State; and

Whereas, According to DOHMH, more than one quarter of New York City high school students report drinking in the last 30 days; and

Whereas, In 2011, according to DOHMH, there were nearly 7,000 alcohol-related emergency department visits among New Yorkers under age 21; and

Whereas, The American Academy of Pediatrics has declared that “the more young people are exposed to alcohol advertising and marketing, the more likely they are to drink, and if they are already drinking, this exposure leads them to drink more”; and

Whereas, The World Health Organization has recommended alcohol advertising restrictions as the most cost-effective means of reducing alcohol problems among youth; and

Whereas, The American Public Health Association and the American Medical Association have called for the removal of all alcohol advertising from mass transit systems in order to protect the health and safety of young people; and

Whereas, The Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health has reported that youth of color are disproportionately exposed to alcohol advertising across a variety of media; and

Whereas, Most urban public transit systems in the United States - including those in Washington, Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Seattle, San Francisco, and Los Angeles - do not allow alcohol advertising because of the reasons listed above; now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the Governor, and the State Legislature to prohibit advertisements for alcoholic beverages on subways, buses, and other New York City Transit property.

 

RM

LS 6376

12/1/2015