H.R. No. 680
                                  R E S O L U T I O N
    1-1        WHEREAS, For the first time in 15 years, the use of alcohol,
    1-2  tobacco, and other drugs is on the rise and statistics regarding
    1-3  this growing dependency represent a sobering toll in terms of both
    1-4  human and financial costs; and
    1-5        WHEREAS, Every American pays nearly $1,000 annually to cover
    1-6  the tremendous costs incurred by these destructive behaviors,
    1-7  including lost productivity of workers, extra medical attention
    1-8  needed for those that abuse, and an increase in law enforcement
    1-9  officers on the street to combat a corresponding increase in auto
   1-10  accidents and crime; and
   1-11        WHEREAS, These behaviors also exact enormous costs in other
   1-12  ways, with the abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and drugs closely linked
   1-13  to the occurrence of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases,
   1-14  unwanted pregnancies, fetal deaths, and birth defects; and
   1-15        WHEREAS,  It is estimated that the country could reduce its
   1-16  health care spending by $90.4 billion if alcohol, tobacco, and drug
   1-17  dependencies could be prevented before they get started; prevention
   1-18  programs have proven the most effective means by which to keep
   1-19  young people from engaging in these destructive behaviors, but
   1-20  these programs have recently experienced cuts in funding, despite
   1-21  the findings of the 1994 Monitoring the Future Survey and the Texas
   1-22  Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse School Survey indicating the
   1-23  pervasiveness of the problem; and
   1-24        WHEREAS, It is imperative that the state demonstrate its
    2-1  commitment to ending the tremendous suffering and pain associated
    2-2  with alcohol, tobacco, and drug abuse by encouraging and supporting
    2-3  the expansion of public and private prevention programs; to this
    2-4  end, a day has been set aside to increase public awareness of this
    2-5  serious problem and to seek positive solutions to ending this
    2-6  tragedy for the sake of the next generation; now, therefore, be it
    2-7        RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 74th Texas
    2-8  Legislature hereby designate April 25, 1995, as Alcohol, Tobacco,
    2-9  and Other Drug Abuse Prevention Day at the Capitol and encourage
   2-10  all Texans to work together on this day to seek a brighter future
   2-11  for all of the citizens of this state.