Digest of Impaired Driving and Selected Beverage Control Laws [2006]

NHTSA · 2006 · ROSA P / United States. Department of Transportation. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

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Summary

This document is the twenty-third edition of the *Digest of Impaired Driving and Selected Beverage Control Laws*, published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in April 2006. The digest serves as a comprehensive reference for the status of state laws regarding impaired driving offenses and alcoholic beverage control across all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, current as of January 1, 2006. Its primary purpose is to facilitate information exchange and simplify research by compiling legal statutes in a consistent, accessible format. The digest is structured to provide detailed entries for each state, covering specific legislative subject areas. These include the basis for Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) charges, such as "under the influence" standards and "illegal per se" blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limits. It details chemical testing protocols, including preliminary breath tests and implied consent laws for alcohol and drug testing. The document also outlines adjudication procedures, such as mandatory adjudication laws and anti-plea-bargaining statutes. Furthermore, it catalogs sanctions for various violations, including criminal penalties (fines, imprisonment), administrative licensing actions (suspensions, revocations), and specific provisions for commercial motor vehicle operators. Additional sections address minimum legal drinking ages, dram shop liability laws, happy hour prohibitions, and open container regulations. The content provides specific statutory citations and definitions for legal terms such as "administrative per se law," "dram shop laws," and "vehicular homicide." For example, the digest notes that Alabama defines "under the influence" as consuming enough alcohol to affect safe vehicle operation, with a BAC limit of ≥.08 for standard offenses and ≥.02 for drivers under 21. It specifies that Alabama imposes mandatory license suspensions for refusing chemical tests, ranging from 90 days for a first refusal to five years for subsequent offenses within five years. Similarly, for Alaska, the digest details that refusing a chemical test is a Class A misdemeanor for a first offense, carrying penalties of up to one year imprisonment and a $5,000 fine, with escalating penalties for repeat offenses. The digest consistently reports whether states have specific laws regarding habitual offenders, vehicle forfeiture, and criminal actions against establishments serving alcohol to intoxicated patrons or minors. The significance of this digest lies in its role as a standardized legal resource for policymakers, researchers, and legal professionals. By aggregating complex and varying state laws into a uniform structure, it enables comparative analysis of impaired driving enforcement and beverage control measures. The inclusion of historical notes and case law citations, such as *Buchanan v. Merger Enterprises, Inc.* for Alabama’s dram shop law, provides context for legal interpretations. The document does not present original empirical research or experimental results but rather compiles existing statutory frameworks, offering a snapshot of the legal landscape for impaired driving and alcohol regulation in the United States at the beginning of 2006.

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Topics

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• dui enforcement
• drowsy as impairment