Special to the Patriot-Bridge
The Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission (ABCC), under the direction of State Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg, has launched Operation Safe Campus. The annual program is designed to target underage drinking on college campuses and in surrounding communities to keep alcoholic beverages out of the hands of underage students and prevent tragedies. This initiative begins each year when students return to colleges and universities throughout Massachusetts.
“As the new school year begins, Operation Safe Campus helps to remind college students, servers and retailers alike about the real risks of underage drinking,” said Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg, who oversees the ABCC. “We hope by raising awareness and promoting responsible choices, we can protect young people and prevent terrible tragedies for kids and their families, before they ever happen.”
The enforcement efforts focus primarily on liquor stores in college communities where underage individuals often attempt to purchase alcoholic beverages with false identification, have adults buy alcoholic beverages for them, or have it delivered by way of delivery apps, as well as bars that have been known to sell or deliver alcoholic beverages to underage individuals.
The program focuses on front-line prevention, with investigators often calling the underage person’s parents when violations occur. ABCC officials say that most parents are unaware that their children are involved in the use of alcohol, and that the intervention is a powerful tool toward family involvement in addressing the problem of underage drinking.
“The goal of Operation Safe Campus is to protect Massachusetts college students as well as those in the community, while at the same time drawing attention to the dangers of underage drinking,” said Jean Lorizio, chairperson of the ABCC. “We hope to keep alcoholic beverages out of the hands of underage people and spread awareness of the devastating consequences that drinking alcohol could have for them and their loved ones.”
In 2024, the ABCC Safe Campus program found 302 minors in possession, transporting, or attempting to purchase alcoholic beverages, 21 adults procuring alcohol for minors, 108 individuals in possession of false identification. Approximately 157 cases of beer and 153 bottles of alcohol were confiscated by Investigators, preventing delivery to approximately 2,100 underage individuals. In 2024, bars and liquor stores were charged with 347 counts of sale to underage persons.
Since 2005, these programs have resulted in the following cumulative results: 13,692 minors in possession or transporting alcoholic beverages; 3,719 adults procuring alcohol for minors; 2,135 individuals in possession of false identification; and approximately 6,263 cases of beer and 5,221 of alcohol were confiscated, preventing delivery to approximately 82,694 underage individuals.
Annually, approximately 1,519 college students between the aged 18 to 24 die from alcohol-related injuries, including motor vehicle crashes, 696,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 are assaulted by another student who has been drinking, and 14 percent of college students meet the criteria for an alcohol use disorder. In Massachusetts alone, the overall annual cost of alcohol abuse by youth is estimated at $1.4 billion.
Massachusetts IMPACT impaired driving data shows that 10% of all traffic fatalities involve drivers under the age of 21.
Massachusetts is among the top ten states for binge drinking, with more than 1 in 4 (27.75%) adults age 18 or older reporting they binged on alcohol in 2020. Among young people ages 12 to 20, 20.77% reported alcohol use in the past month and 11.81% reported binge alcohol use in the past month in Massachusetts. The national averages were 17.32% and 10.14%, respectively.
One in three (33.86%) substance abuse treatment admissions among persons aged 12 and older in 2019 in Massachusetts were alcohol related.