Problem Identification
Underage drinking and its associated problems are a challenge to parents, teachers, local law enforcement, and the Hill County community at large.  The problem extends beyond underage drinkers, it includes how tolerant law enforcement, family members and our community is towards underage drinking.  When adults provide alcohol for minors and/or do not discourage its use, our youth receive mixed messages.  Minors need to understand and respect the law, as do adults.

Campaign Goals and Objectives
Hill County has ZERO TOLERANCE for Underage Drinking. To that end, the campaign is committed to reducing the problems resulting from underage drinking. Some of the objectives of the five-year campaign include:

• Developing a multi-media based, community-wide prevention and education program;
• Forming alliances among community groups that address underage drinking;
• Identifying links between underage drinking and other social issues, such as binge drinking, HIV exposure, teen pregnancy, juvenile crime, date rape and truancy;
• Providing  alcohol education and prevention activities to youth;
• Removing minors from the Designated Driver program; while a successful program for adults, it was never intended as an alternative for minors.  Furthermore, non-drinking minors, whether driving or just along for the ride, under Montana State Law, WILL be ticketed for Minor in Possession;
• Advocating a countywide curfew.

• An annual spring media campaign that includes a main street billboard, newspaper articles and radio PSA's, and educational information distributed through school newsletters;
• Development of public information and education materials targeted, and disseminated to, students at MSU-Northern;
• Collaboration with other agencies and parent groups on alcohol-free proms and graduations;
• Offering responsible server trainings in cooperation with local alcohol distributors, tavern owners, and retailers;
• Sponsoring and coordinating presentations in the schools and communities;
• Development of a web page that includes statistics and information on underage drinking;
• Promotion of seasonal Sober & Safe campaigns;
• Identifying the feasibility, pros and cons, and steps necessary to implement a countywide curfew.