Industry influence on alcohol regulation in the United States

In the U.S., alcohol use is the third leading preventable cause of death, contributing to an average of 79,000 deaths annually. In 2005, there were more than 1.6 million hospitalizations and 4 million emergency room visits nationwide for alcohol-related conditions. National costs from excessive alcohol consumption exceeded $223 billion dollars in 2006. As the World Health Organization's global alcohol strategy illustrates, evidence-based policies such as addressing the availability and marketing of alcoholic beverages are fundamental to reducing alcohol-related harm world-wide. Yet multinational corporations seek to influence these alcohol control policies at the state and local levels with tactics such as: creating front groups to pose as public health-friendly organizations and advance industry-positive public relations campaigns; lobbying lawmakers and contributing to political campaigns; and dominating alcohol regulatory trade groups.

The safety and health of each state's residents depend on the adoption and implementation of effective alcohol beverage control law. As such, public health needs to become a permanent theme of the alcohol regulatory agenda. Alcohol Justice recently documented industry domination of one alcohol regulatory trade group, the National Conference of State Liquor Administrators, at the group's 2010 annual conference. We will present this information as well as data on alcohol industry lobbying and contributions at federal and state levels, and describe various front groups and their activities to promote the industry. We will also discuss policy recommendations for the alcohol industry, state regulators, and public health professionals to balance industry influence on alcohol regulation.