(Photo: Commons Wikimedia)
WHITE PLAINS, NY (Press Release)– Congresswoman Nita M. Lowey (D-New York), the ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, was joined on a conference call this morning with Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) National President Jan Withers and Rockland County Sherriff Louis Falco III to announce that she will be introducing a bill next week when the House of Representatives reconvenes that would push states to require the use of ignition interlock devices for a minimum of six months for all convicted drunk driving offenders. States would face a reduction in federal transportation funding if they do not change their laws by October 1, 2014.
The bill is named “Alisa’s Law” in honor of MADD National President Jan Withers’ daughter, Alisa Joy, who was killed at the age of 15 in 1992 by an underage drinker who chose to drive after consuming too many alcoholic beverages.
“In my mind, driving drunk only once is one time too many,” said Lowey. “I am introducing Alisa’s Law to provide law-enforcement officials an additional tool to help keep our communities safe. We have seen successful implementation in some states, including New York, and we have seen partial implementation in others. The time is now to make this the law of the land across the country in order to keep drunk drivers off the streets.”
MADD applauded Lowey’s decision to introduce Alisa’s Law. “Requiring ignition interlocks for all convicted drunk drivers is now recognized as the best way to prevent them from reoffending,” said MADD National President Jan Withers. “There are 24 states that have passed such legislation. It is imperative that all states follow suit to ensure that ALL Americans are protected from drunk drivers. Congresswoman Lowey’s bill will help achieve just that,” said Withers.
An interlock is a device that requires a driver to provide a breath sample to the vehicle in order to start it. If the sample is above the legal limit, the car won’t start. The advantage of interlock technology compared to license suspension is that offenders can still travel freely, but they can’t endanger the public by driving drunk.
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Keeping Up With Jewish Public Officials: Nita Lowey
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While tougher laws have helped save lives, drunk driving still kills far too many people. In 2012, 10,322 deaths were a result of drunk driving, which translates into one out of three highway deaths. Additionally, according to a compilation of studies by MADD, the average drunk driver has driven drunk 87 times before being caught. In addition to the enormous emotional toll, drunk driving costs taxpayers $132 billion each year, including $2.4 billion in New York.
New York State already has interlock requirements on the books. In 2010, state lawmakers passed “Leandra’s Law” making New York a model ignition interlock state. Along with strong efforts from law enforcement, ignition interlocks are a contributing factor in New York’s DUI fatality numbers being below the national average. Leandra’s Law has helped increase the number of interlock installations from 2,500 in 2010 when the law first went into effect to 6,870 in July 2013. MADD expects more interlocks to be installed in 2014.
“Mandatory interlocks for all drunk drivers is a smart policy,” said Rockland County Sherriff Louis Falco. “Drunk driving doesn’t stop at the state lines and law enforcement must have every tool at their disposal to prevent drunk driving accidents and deaths from happening. I applaud Congresswoman Lowey for introducing this bill so that every State, not just New York, can fully utilize this technology to save lives.”
“MADD thanks Congresswoman Lowey for her leadership to help eliminate drunk driving. It’s time for all states to pass this lifesaving law,” said Withers.
Congresswoman Lowey has been a leader in enacting strong laws to keep unsafe drivers off the road. In 2000, Lowey successfully passed legislation requiring states to enact a maximum Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) level of .08 as a condition of receiving federal transportation assistance, which prompted all 50 states and the District of Columbia to implement this commonsense policy.
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Preceding provided by Congresswoman Nita Lowey …. Articles in San Diego Jewish World on Jewish Democratic women in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives are sponsored by Laura Galinson in memory of her father, Murray Galinson.