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The American Psychiatric Association

• The APA has released a first draft of the new Diagnostic and Statistics Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V). The draft includes significant changes to their classifications of addictive disease. The DSM-5 will be released in 2013. The deadline for comments is April 20, 2010.

Borkenstein Course

• Indiana University’s Center for Studies of Law in Action administers the premier alcohol and drugged driving courses in the United States. Faculty include internationally recognized experts in toxicology, enforcement, and prosecution. The alcohol course will be held on April 25-40, 2010 and December 5-10, 2010. The drugged driving course will be held April 11-16, 2010.

Bureau of Justice Assistance

• The BJA issued the FY 2010 Competitive Grant Announcement for the Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program. Only state, local, and tribal governments are eligible to apply for the funds, which may be used to address offenders with mental illness or co-occurring mental health and substance abuse disorders. Applications are due April 8, 2010.

• The BJA has posted its Guide to Grants FY 2010, outlining where to find, how to write, and how to submit grant applications.

National Center for DWI Courts

• The NCDC is providing scheduled trainings at various Academy Courts.

National Conference of State Legislatures

• In their publication The Bulletin, NCSL recently published information on significant state sentencing and corrections legislation in 2009. The Bulletin also published a chart summarizing state interlock laws.

National District Attorneys Association

• The third edition of the National Prosecution Standards now is available for NDAA members. For more information, contact the NDAA at 703.549.9222.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

• NHTSA has contracted with the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation to conduct a study of SCRAM (Secure Continuous Remote Alcohol Monitor) application in the field. The project will include 10 to 12 case studies that dissect the selection process for offenders, challenges, lessons learned, programming parameters, and results. The case studies will be used by state and local agencies and courts interested in using the technology to monitor offenders.

• In November 2009 NHTSA published Ignition Interlocks – What You Need to Know, a “toolkit for policymakers, highway safety professionals, and advocates.” in November 2009.

• NHTSA solicited comments and suggestions for its 2010–2015 strategic planning. You may view the submissions through regulations.gov. You may also view NPAMC’s comments on the site.

• In December 2009 NHTSA Released Fatalities and Fatality Rates in Alcohol-Impaired-Driving Crashes by State, 2007-2008. The report showed a decline in alcohol-related fatality rates in 40 states.

• In March NHTSA released their Early Estimate for Motor Vehicle Traffic Fatalities for 2009 report. The projected fatality data shows an 8.9 percent drop from 2008, with fatalities reaching the lowest level since 1954.

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism

• The NIAAA launched a new webzine, NIAAA Spectrum. The webzine includes feature articles, short news updates, and relevant information on NIAAA and the alcohol research field. NIAAA Spectrum will be published three times a year.

National Institutes of Health

• The NIH launched the Basic Behavioral and Social Science Opportunity Network (OppNet) in November 2009. OppNet is a trans-NIH initiative to expand the agency’s funding of basic behavioral and social sciences research.

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

• SAMHSA released data from the latest National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services. You may access a summary, data, and the full report online.

• SAMHSA will begin accepting new submissions for the National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices during the Summer of 2010.

United States Congress

• Congress continued issuing short-term extensions of the Federal highway law (SAFETEA-LU), which was set to expire in September 2009. Congress is not expected to pass a successor bill until the end of 2010, at the earliest.