Primary prevention services are designed to foster safe and healthy environments for individuals, families and the greater community, positively effect community norms and attitudes, and increase awareness and knowledge about alcohol and other drugs thereby influencing incidence and prevalence of problems within the community.

The Social Host Accountability Ordinance has spread quickly across the County and has become an important tool by which communities are changing norms and tackling teen binge drinking. To learn more about the ordinance, click here.

So, what do I do now that I have seen the video? Check out the Center for Disease Control's Community Gude to Preventing Excessive Alcohol Use for evidence based interventions; The Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration's National Registry of Effective Programs to evidence based programs, the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth or our own County of Marin Summary on How to take Action locally!

Are you fed up with other parents who allow you child to drink alcohol at "house parties", putting them at risk for driving after drinking? Have you seen our ads in the San Francisco Chronicle or the Marin Independent Journal? Would you like to get involved to help do something about the problem of underage drinking in Marin? Call Gary Najarian at (415)499-4230 or email at gnajarian@marincounty.org. Click on the titles below to see copies of the DUI campaign.

Please click here for a full summary of our Prevention efforts and partners

In December 2005, a group of Mayors, Town Council members and Chiefs of Police from the communities of Novato, San Rafael, Tiburon, Belvedere, Larkspur, Corte Madera, and Fairfax attended a Leadership Forum to identify ways that local communities can take action to stop underage and binge drinking.

Click here for a summary of what your community can do.

Congratulations to the Town of Fairfax!  On February 1, 2006 the Town Council voted to create a local community task force to collect data and identify strategies to reduce underage and binge drinking and to increase positive alternatives for youth.  Councilmembers Lew Tremaine and MaryAnn Maggiore will lead the effort.

In 2003, the State of California entered into an agreement with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to fund and administer a State Incentive Grant (SIG) program.  The purpose of the California SIG is to reduce binge drinking among youth (12-17) and young adults (18-25), and related community problems. 

In Marin, the focus of Phase I of the SIG was to strengthen the infrastructure and capacity at the County, provider and community level to effectively develop a plan and implement strategies to reduce binge drinking and related community problems.  Phase II (Years 2 and 3) of the SIG will focus on implementing the plan to reduce binge drinking and related community problems to achieve the following outcomes which are matched to the priority areas from the Needs Assessment.

In Marin, the Youth Leadership Institute will conduct all Policy Change and/or Development activities as well as the Prevention of Sexual Assault activities through the Breaking the Link Collaborative which includes Community Violence Solutions and Huckleberry Youth Programs.  O’Rorke, Inc will conduct all media campaigns and public relations activities.  Bay Area Community Resources will conduct the Responsible Beverage Service trainings as well as work with local alcohol sellers/servers to implement changes to policies and practices.  A coalition of local law enforcement agencies including the Novato Police Department, San Rafael Police Department, Twin Cities Police Authority, Mill Valley Police Department, San Anselmo Police Department and the County Sheriff’s Office will implement increased enforcement activities.

To learn more about the SIG, click here for a summary of the project.

SIG Evaluation and Sustainability Plan

In response to the growing number of reports about the impact of alcohol marketing on young people, a group of six organizations worked together to make history at the 2004 Marin County Fair when they replaced the previous sponsor of the fair, a beer company, and assumed the title sponsorship of the Fair.  The six organizations that originally comprised Play Fair have grown to nine in 2005 and are working with the Fair management to continue the title and food tent sponsorships at the Fair. 

In 2006, Play Fair has expanded its mission statement to include reducing youth exposure to the marketing of the alcohol, tobacco and fast food industries.

Click here to learn more about the benefits of Play Fair.

Click here for Play Fair's website

Marking the first policy of its kind in the nation to ban alcohol beverage companies from sponsoring a municipal event, a new ordinance was passed by the Marin County Board of Supervisors thanks in large part to a group of young advocates. The Marin Youth Health Advisory Council (MYHAC) instrumentally secured the passing of this landmark policy that prohibits alcohol sponsorship and alcohol sponsorship signage at the Marin County Fair in an effort to take back and shape its community.

The ordinance recognizes that “outdoor alcohol advertising, alcohol sponsorship and alcohol sponsorship signs are unique and distinguishable types of product promotion and brand marketing that subject the public to involuntary and unavoidable forms of solicitation.” The Marin County Fair welcomes thousands of families and an estimated 25,000 young people each year. The ordinance also acknowledges that children are “inundated with sponsorship signs simply by attending the event” and that there is “no practical way for parents to monitor or limit the exposure.”

For Press materials on the ordinance, click here

For a copy of the ordinance, click here

For the Marin County Board of Supervisors, click here

Responsible Beverage Service (RBS) is a community-based approach to reducing risks associated with retail alcohol environments.  Good RBS means that bars check IDs, refuse service to drunk patrons, and the community gets involved to ensure safe alcohol service and sales.   

Training for RBS is currently being offered at no cost from Bay Area Community Resources.  The training is a 3 hour session, and is for on or off sale.  The goals of these sessions are to provide technical assistance, consultation and training regarding the selling and serving of alcohol.    

Click here for a flyer with RBS training dates to post for your employees.