The State - News from Nov. 11, 1985

Each Californian drank an average of 40 gallons of alcoholic beverages in the 1983-84 fiscal year, 25% above the national average, a state agency reported. The Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs said a study shows the 1984 consumption breakdown among Californians 14 years of age and older was 31.4 gallons of beer, 5.8 gallons of wine and 2.7 gallons of distilled spirits. Researchers also reported a slight decrease in per-capita consumption of alcohol, from 40.8 gallons in the 1980-81 fiscal year to 39.9 in the 1983-84 fiscal year, the most recent year for which there are complete statistics. However, there was a 21.6% increase in felony drunk driving arrests from 1980 to 1984, from 5,738 to 6,980.