Two new bills in the California Legislature seek to crack down on drunk driving.
One would lower the legal blood alcohol content limit to 0.05 (point-zero-five) … down from the current 0.08 (point-zero-eight). It’s a measure backed by Democratic Senator Jerry Hill, who says it would take him four drinks to exceed the current legal limit.
Hill: “If I drank four drinks in an hour, I’d be under this podium. There’s no way, I believe, I could drive a car — much less, drive it safely.” (0:10)
Business groups and the restaurant and alcohol industries say the bill would not save lives … but instead merely target “responsible social drinkers who are not meaningfully impaired.”
The other measure would require everyone convicted of driving under the influence to install an ignition interlock device. Under a state law that just took effect this year, they’re required for all D-U-I convictions except first-time offenders who were not involved in injury crashes.
