"We are neighbors," said James Baker, Executive Director, IHA, "and we have to work together to be good neighbors. Closing the bars earlier all along the border will save more lives than any other action. The coalition is requesting Mexico to implement earlier bar closing and to stop issuing late night opening permits," said Baker.

The disparity in drinking age, cheap drink specials, late bar hours and the social climate continue to attract many young people to our neighboring communities in Mexico with one sole purpose: to party and get drunk.

This behavior by young Americans is impacting the entire four-state border region with the loss of young lives on our highways and other alcohol-related trauma such as sexual assaults and violence.

"Closing the bars earlier works," stated Ellen Ward, Texans Standing Tall. "Closing the bars at 2 a.m. in Cd. Juarez is a great example of positive results. That action resulted in a 54% average border crosser decline between 12:00 and 5:00 a.m. After 3 a.m. the decline went up to 85%, and we experienced an 89% decline of border crossers intending to drive after drinking with blood alcohol content over .08."

IHA projections show that bars closing earlier in Tijuana will create the same effect.

In a recent bold move to protect both U.S. and Mexican communities, the city of Mexicali will not be granting any more permits for late hour extensions to bars. According to Texans Standing Tall, the Mayor of El Paso, Carlos Ramirez and the Governor of Chihuahua are considering health related policies that could reduce risks and liabilities as well as improve the health and safety for binational citizens alike. Some policies under consideration are to change the minimum legal drinking age to 21 for US citizens who want to drink in Chihuahua and create a minor in consumption charge that would provide the authority for law enforcement to intervene with pedestrian minors with any detectable amount of alcohol in their system.

"The senseless tragedies of underage drinking must stop. We can create environments for our children on both sides of the border to grow up safe from alcohol-related problems," said Carole Grady of the West Texas Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, who serves as a regional co-chair in the Texans Standing Tall Coalition. "We know youths crossing the border to drink causes major problems such as car crashes, date rapes, homicides, and injuries. The statewide coalition hopes that by creating positive health policy changes youths will have a safer, healthier environment."

" We see alcohol-related trauma in the entire border community. We must have binational and regional cooperation to implement policies that will reduce alcohol-related trauma," said Ellen Ward, from Texans Standing Tall.

The coalition maintains that specific permanent policy based changes will have the greatest influence on reducing alcohol-related trauma in communities along the U.S./Mexico border. The following policy recommendations are presented by the California / Texas Policy Coalition: