Educating on the consequences of alcohol

GALLUP ALCOHOL POLICY ALLIANCE HOLDS INFORMATIONAL, STRATEGIC MEETING

By Molly Ann Howell Managing Editor

Gallup and McKinley County have a wellknown alcohol problem. The Sun reports weekly on DWIs, with some offenders having seven, eight, or even nine offenses.

Across New Mexico, an average of five people died every day of alcohol-related causes in 2020.

The Gallup Alcohol Policy Alliance has debated the alcohol problem and strategizing ways to improve it since 2016. Now they’re bringing the public into the discussion by hosting a “Community Conversation” event May 23 at the El Morro Events Center.

Dr. Jenny Wei, a local doctor who is board-certified in addiction, facilitated the discussion. In an interview with the Sun, she explained why she wanted to educate the community on the risks of alcohol.

“I think it’s impossible to ignore that New Mexico has the highest rate of alcohol-related deaths and McKinley County is the county with the highest rates, even multiple times higher than the state overall. We see those in our local

Know the facts about alcohol

By Molly Ann Howell Managing Editor

hospitals, and it’s impossible to ignore the problem,” Wei said.

New Mexico Department of Health Alcohol Epidemiologist

Garry Kelley began the event by sharing information about alcohol and how it affects McKinley County.

When it comes to alcohol-related deaths, the NMDOH divides the statistics into two categories: acute and chronic. Chronic deaths include cancers or other long-term diseases caused by excessive alcohol use, while acute is defi ned as things that happen suddenly, such as car accidents caused by drunk driving.

McKinley County’s chronic deaths are three times higher than the rest of New Mexico and acute cases are two times higher.

Part of the discussion at the meeting focused on the strategies McKinley County could use to help prevent alcohol-related deaths. Kelley provided some examples of what has worked for other municipalities across the nation. His suggestions included increasing the alcohol tax, regulating how many outlets can sell alcohol in the county, keeping restaurants and bars accountable if any of their patrons get into accidents after drinking at their establishment, and enforcing age restriction on alcohol consumption.

Kelley also reminded everyone at the meeting of New Mexico’s current liquor laws. The state gives local governments the authority when it comes to alcohol license zoning. It also limits the days and times alcohol can be sold.

In May 2021, a law was changed in Gallup to bring the county up to par with the state laws. The law changed so that alcohol is now sold in Gallup on Sundays, except for between the hours of 7 am to 9:59 am.

As for liquor licenses, Gallup does have a problem. The city currently has 30 active liquor licenses, and the state liquor board recommends Gallup have only 11. To compare, the liquor board recommends 282 licenses for Albuquerque, and it currently has 387.

WHO’S TO BLAME?

A large part of the discussion during the meeting focused on who was to blame for the city and county’s major alcohol problem.

During his presentation to the “Community Conversation” group, Garry Kelley, a New Mexico Department of Health Alcohol Epidemiologist, shared some information about alcohol and how it affects McKinley County.

He explained that the new guidelines set by the Center for Disease Control recommend that men only consume two alcoholic beverages a day at maximum, and women should only consume one. Drinking is considered binge drinking when a man has five or more in one day and a woman has four or more.

After sharing that updated information, Kelley broke down statistics about McKinley County, comparing it to both the rest of New Mexico and the U.S. All these are statistics were gathered from New Mexico Department of Health surveys:

• 15.1% of McKinley County residents aged 18-34 reported binge drinking within in the past month; 18.9% of residents aged 35-49, 10.8% of people aged 50-64; and 2% of people over the age of 65.

• In 2016, 21.2% of men in McKinley County admitted to binge drinking, while only 5.3% of women said they did. 20.7% of men reported binge drinking in 2021, and 6.2% of women said they had. In comparison, only 20.4% of men nationwide binge drink, and 10.7% of women nationwide said they do.

• When it comes to underage drinking, 6.3% of McKinley County middle schoolers said they currently drink alcohol, while 7.6% of New Mexico middle schoolers said they do. For highschoolers, that number is 9.8% for McKinley County and 19.5% for the rest of the state.

• 2.3% of McKinley County middle schoolers admitted to binge drinking, while 3.5% of the rest of New Mexico middle schoolers said they participate in the activity. For high schoolers the numbers were 2.8% for McKinley County and 7.6% for the rest of the state.

• In 2014, 0.7% of McKinley County residents admitted to drinking and driving. That number dropped to 0.6% in 2020. In New Mexico, 1.3% of residents reported that they’d driven drunk in the past in 2020. For the U.S., that number was up to 2.2% in 2020.

• In 2013, 7.3% of public high school students in McKinley County said they’d driven drunk. That number dropped to 2.9% in 2021. Both New Mexico and the rest of the U.S. were at 4.6% in 2021.

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On the Cover: The Gallup Alcohol Policy Alliance hosted a “Community Conversation” to discuss the county’s alcohol problem with the public.

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One attendee said the city and county shouldn’t put blame on the restaurants and stores that sell alcohol, but rather on bootleggers who sell the product illegally.

“We can’t place 99.9% of the blame on our establishments when we have bootleggers on the streets who are

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T-Mobile - 24 selling [alcohol], and they’re not licensed,” she said.

As a local business owner, Sammy Chioda agreed that the problem doesn’t stem from the city’s restaurants. He explained that he holds ongoing classes for his staff at Sammy C’s Pub & Grille on how to sell alcohol responsibly.

“We’re not on a mission to get you drunk,” Chioda said.

Chioda also said he doesn’t blame anyone specific for the problems in Gallup. He more so blames the system.

He shared a story about a friend of his who died in Albuquerque in a drunk driving accident. A man who had been told by a Chavez County judge that he wasn’t allowed to leave Roswell because of his multiple DWI charges. Shortly after receiving that sentence, the man made the three-hour drive to Albuquerque, crashing into

Chioda’s friend, killing him.

Chioda brought that story up to point out that many people who have been charged with multiple DWIs often get off on technicalities, such as the cop didn’t show up to court that day.

Wei argued that the alcohol problem is not something that can just be fi xed by the courts or the police.

“If [people] think it’s [a police problem], they’re going to think they don’t have to do anything about it,” Wei said.

Liquor Tax

One of the suggestions Kelley presented was for the state to increase alcohol taxes.

During the recent legislative session, HB 230 passed the House and Senate. It set a fl at 25 cent tax per serving. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham ultimately vetoed the increase.

Currently, the state beer excise tax is $0.41 per gallon, distilled spirits are about $6 per gallon, and wine excise taxes are $1.70.

Wei and Gallup’s Behavioral Health Investment Zone Manager Debra Martinez said they plan to continue to fight for an increase in the next legislative session. Martinez noted that even an .01 cent increase would bring in millions of dollars for the state.

One component missing in the “Community Conversation” was a presentation from representatives of the New Mexico Special Investigations Unit and Alcohol Beverage Control Division about enforcement efforts and liquor licensing. Since no representative was able to attend the meeting, Wei and Martinez said that another meeting would be scheduled in the future for that presentation, although no date has been set.