RASS Workshop Schedule in Rockdale County for November 17, 2009.

RASS Workshop Schedule in Sumter County and Crisp County for December 10, 2009.

RASS (Responsible Alcohol Sales & Service) Workshops can provide owners and managers of alcohol-licensed establishments with some of the most valuable information and resources they can ever receive!

State and local laws change regularly. RASS supplies you with the knowledge and tools to easily implement strategies for preventing sales to youth and intoxicated patrons.

Through RASS workshops, you will gain information which you can use to create or strengthen company policies, disciplinary actions for abuse of such policies and training methods and materials for your employees. Additionally, RASS workshops can help you interpret and comply with state and local rules and regulations.

This knowledge will help minimize the liability for you, your employees and your business. RASS workshops can also provide tips for working with law enforcement officials to protect you and the general public from drunk drivers and those who supply alcoholic beverages to underage youth.

  • More than 62% of the U.S. population favors regulations that "make it harder for teenagers to get alcoholic beverages."
  • 80% favor checking everyone‘s identification before selling alcohol!  

And in Georgia…   

  • 91% believed that Responsible Alcohol Sales training is good insurance for their business. 
  • 97% said they would rather lose a customer than risk selling alcohol to somebody that is underage. All of the above statistics are from the Youth Access to Alcohol Summary Report, 2002 by the University of Minnesota, Alcohol Epidemiology Program.

Laws and Enforcement   

  • Department of Revenue–issues state alcohol licenses for retailers and enforces state alcohol laws and regulations. 
  • Police Officers–enforce laws and arrest offenders of local ordinances. 
  • Judges/Courts–issue penalties for violators of criminal codes regarding alcohol.
  • License Review Boards–May revoke and/or suspend local licenses for violations.  

What is the Georgia Underage Drinking Prevention Initiative?  

A Statewide Prevention Campaign to Prevent Underage Drinking which includes RASS Workshops. The RASS Workshops will be held in College/University communities in each region of the State of Georgia.  

O.C.G.A. Sec. 51-1-40(b) provides in summary as follows:   Any person who directly or through their employee willfully provides alcoholic beverages to a person who is either (1) not of lawful drinking age or (2) is noticeably intoxicated at the time of the sale, knowing that such person will soon be driving a motor vehicle, may become liable and be sued for injuries or damages resulting from the intoxication of such minor or intoxicated person.
                                    

The Georgia Underage Drinking Prevention Initiative is funded by the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, Division of Addictive Diseases, Office of Prevention Services and Programs in response to the Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent and Reduce Underage Drinking.