Interlock Facts

WASHINGTON – Today the American Beverage Institute (ABI), which represents over 1100 Texas restaurants, denounced ignition interlock bill HB4061 which passed the Texas House yesterday and will now be heard in the State Senate. This bill would mandate the installation of breathalyzers in the cars of low-BAC (blood alcohol concentration), first-time offenders.

“By mandating breathalyzers for first time offenders, regardless of their BAC level, this proposal ignores the root cause of today’s drunk driving problem—hard core alcohol abusers,” said ABI spokeswoman Sarah Longwell.
 

Data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) show that the average BAC of a drunk driver in a fatal car crash in Texas is 0.19% -- more than twice the legal limit. Additionally, a NHTSA administrator has said that today’s problem is “by far and away” made up of “those who have alcohol use disorders.”

But the bill pending in Texas fails to target this dangerous population and instead will force first-time DUI offenders, even those just one sip over the legal limit, to install breathalyzers in their cars. In fact, former MADD chapter Executive Director, Charles V. Peña, has said “a first time offender - at the legal limit of .08 BAC should not automatically receive the same punishment as someone driving at more than twice that and with prior convictions.”
 

That’s why 27 states have passed high-BAC and repeat-offender laws, while just 10 target low-BAC, first-time offenders. If this bill passes, Texas will join the handful of states that punish marginal, first-time offenders the same as hardcore drunk drivers. The State Senate can and should fix this by amending the bill to apply to high-BAC and repeat-offenders.
 

Its also important to note that low-BAC, first-offender bills like this one are part of a little-known movement that seeks to mandate ignition interlock technology in all cars as standard equipment in the United States.

 “With Texas’s drunk driving limit set at .08 BAC, this bill would mandate that drivers install a breathalyzer in their car for behavior that, according to numerous studies, impairs them less than driving while talking on a hands-free cell phone,” said Longwell. “A 120 pound woman can reach the .08 BAC level by having two glasses of wine in two hours. Should she receive the same punishment as someone with a .19 BAC level or multiple offenses?"