[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 73 (Friday, May 21, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6106-S6107]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
THRIFT SAVINGS PLAN OPEN ELECTIONS ACT OF 2004
Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President. I am delighted to join with Senator Collins
and other colleagues on the Governmental Affairs Committee to introduce
the Thrift Savings Plan Open Elections Act of 2004. Our bill will
provide participants in the Thrift Savings Plan, TSP, significant
flexibility in managing their TSP accounts.
Over the years, I have successfully offered legislation which has
ensured that Federal employees enrolled in the Government's retirement
savings plan enjoy the same opportunities afforded to employees in the
private and public sectors, such as the ability to make additional
contributions to the TSP for those over the age of 50 and immediate
enrollment for new employees. This new bill would eliminate open
seasons, which prohibit employees who choose not to contribute to wait
until for a specific amount of time if they later decide to
participate.
I am especially pleased that the legislation also includes a section
devoted to enhancing financial literacy for Federal employees. As my
colleagues know, I have long championed the need for expanded financial
literacy for Americans of all ages and background who face increasingly
complex financial decisions as members of the Nation's workforce,
managers of their families' resources, and voting citizens.
Our bill directs the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board,
FRTIB, which administers the TSP, to enhance the tools available to TSP
participants so that they will be better able to understand, evaluate,
and compare the financial products, services, and opportunities
available from the Thrift Savings Plan. The measure also requires that
as part of the retirement training offered by the Office of Personnel
Management, OPM, that OPM, in consultation with the board, develop a
retirement financial literacy and education strategy for Federal
employees. I wish to commend both the thrift board and OPM for the work
that has already been undertaken to increase financial literacy among
Federal employees, including the recent OPM-sponsored financial
literacy fairs.
As for all Americans, financial literacy education is essential for
Federal employees to develop a base of knowledge so that they can
participate effectively in the modern economy. We must find
opportunities to get information to individuals at the appropriate
times throughout their lives as their financial situations and needs
change. I believe that the provisions in this bill will give Federal
employees the tools needed to empower them to make informed decisions
regarding their retirement and financial security.
I strongly urge my colleagues to cosponsor this legislation.
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By Mr. GRASSLEY:
S. 2480. A bill to amend title 23, United States Code, to research
and prevent drug impaired driving; to the Committee on Environment and
Public Works.
Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, every half hour, somewhere in this
country somebody is killed as a result of an alcohol related traffic
accident. This is a sobering statistic. Thanks in part to a massive
national response, nearly 1.5 million people are arrested and taken off
the road each year for driving under the influence of alcohol,
undoubtedly saving lives. But, there is an equally dangerous and
potentially devastating problem lurking on our Nation's highways that
is going largely undetected.
In 2002, nearly 11 million people drove under the influence of
illegal drugs, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health
Report. While the effort to reduce drunk driving is making progress,
those using illegal drugs like marijuana, cocaine, methamphetamine, and
opiates continue to get behind the wheel, putting each of us at risk
everyday.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,
drugs are used by approximately 10 to 22 percent of all drivers
involved in fatal motor vehicle crashes. In 2003, a study conducted at
the Shock Trauma Center at the University of Maryland Hospital in
Baltimore found that testing for alcohol alone would have identified
less than 30 percent of all the substance abusing drivers admitted to
the trauma unit as a result of a motor vehicle accident. Drugged
driving is clearly a serious problem.
While it is illegal in all 50 States to drive a motor vehicle under
the influence of alcohol or drugs, there is no consistency in the way
the States approach drug impaired drivers. In fact, existing laws often
hinder the prosecution of drugged drivers. Adding further difficulty,
there currently is no road side test to detect the presence of a
controlled substance in a driver's body.
In response to these challenges, today I am pleased to be joined by
Senator Feinstein in introducing legislation designed to encourage
States to develop and carry out drug impaired driving traffic safety
programs. By adopting a model statute, States become eligible for
grants that would assist drivers in need of drug treatment, as well as
grants that would enhance the training of law enforcement and
prosecutors. Furthermore, in an effort to keep drug impaired drivers
off the road, passage of this legislation will advance the research and
development of a roadside testing mechanism.
Clearly there is a need to strengthen efforts to identify, prosecute,
and treat drugged drivers. Just as the coordinated efforts to prevent
drunk driving have saved lives, so too can the devastating consequences
of drugged driving be prevented. I encourage my colleagues to join in
support of this legislation.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be
printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the
Record, as follows:
S. 2480
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Drug Impaired Driving
Research and Prevention Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that--
(1) driving under the influence of, or after having used,
illegal drugs has become a significant problem worldwide;
(2) in 2002, over 35,000,000 persons in the United States
aged 12 or older had used illegal drugs in the past year and
almost 11,000,000 of these persons (5 percent of the total
population of the United States aged 12 or older and 31
percent of past year illicit drug users) had driven under the
influence of, or after having used, illegal drugs in the past
year;
(3) research has established that abuse of a number of
drugs can impair driving performance;
(4) according to the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration, illegal drugs (often in combination with
alcohol) are used by approximately 10 to 22 percent of
drivers involved in all motor vehicles crashes;
(5) drug impaired drivers are less frequently detected,
prosecuted, or referred to treatment than drunk drivers;
(6) there is a lack of uniformity or consistency in the way
the 50 States approach drug impaired drivers;
[[Page S6107]]
(7) too few police officers have been trained to detect
drug impaired drivers, and too few prosecutors have been
trained to prove drug impaired driving cases beyond a
reasonable doubt;
(8) per se drug impaired driving laws, like those used for
driving under the influence of alcohol, are feasible and
represent a sound strategy for dealing with drug impaired
drivers and can assist in the prosecution of drug impaired
driving offenders; and
(9) while it is illegal in all States to drive a motor
vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, drugs other
than alcohol, or a combination of alcohol and other drugs,
there is no consistent method across States for identifying
drug impairment and the presence of drugs in the body.
SEC. 3. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to provide a model for States to implement and enforce
a drug impaired driving statute;
(2) to ensure drivers in need of drug education or
treatment are identified and provided with the appropriate
assistance;
(3) to advance research and development of testing
mechanisms and knowledge about drugged driving and its impact
on traffic safety; and
(4) to enhance the training of traffic safety officers and
prosecutors to detect, enforce, and prosecute drug impaired
driving laws.
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act, the following definitions apply:
(1) Controlled substance.--The term ``controlled
substance'' includes substances listed in schedules I through
V of section 112(e) of the Controlled Substances Act (21
U.S.C. 812(e)).
(2) Inhalant.--The term ``inhalant'' means a household or
commercial product that can be used by inhaling for
intoxicating effect.
(3) Drug recognition expert.--The term ``drug recognition
expert'' means an individual trained in a specific evaluation
procedure that enables the person to determine whether an
individual is under the influence of drugs and then to
determine the type of drug causing the observable impairment.
SEC. 5. MODEL STATUTE.
(a) In General.--Not later than one year after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall develop and
provide to the States a model statute relating to drug
impaired driving which incorporates the provisions described
in this Act.
(b) Mandatory Provisions.--Provisions of the model statute
developed by the Secretary for recommendation to the States
under this section shall include, at a minimum, a provision
that the crime of drug impaired driving is committed when a
person operates a motor vehicle--
(1) while any detectable amount of a controlled substance
is present in the person's body, as measured in the person's
blood, urine, saliva, or other bodily substance; or
(2) due to the presence of a controlled substance or a
controlled substance in combination with alcohol or an
inhalant, or both, in the person's body, the person's mental
or physical faculties are affected to a noticeable or
perceptible degree.
(c) Discretionary Provisions.--Provisions of the model
statute developed by the Secretary for recommendation to the
States under this section may include the following:
(1) Sanctions for refusing to submit to a test for the
presence of a controlled substance in a person's body which
are equivalent to sanctions for a positive test result.
(2) Lawful use of any controlled substance listed in
schedule II, III, IV, or V of section 112(c) of the
Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 812(c)) that was
lawfully prescribed by a physician licensed under State law
is an affirmative defense to a charge of drug impaired
driving; except that the affirmative defense shall not be
available if it is shown that the person's mental or physical
faculties were impaired by such use to a noticeable or
perceptible degree.
(3) A graduated system of penalties for repeat offenses of
drug impaired driving, including, at a minimum, that a third
or subsequent offense within a 10-year period shall be a
felony punishable by imprisonment for more than a year.
(4) Authorization for States to suspend or revoke the
license of any driver upon receiving a record of the driver's
conviction of driving a motor vehicle while under the
influence of a controlled substance.
(5) Provisions that require a sentence of imprisonment
imposed for any drug impaired driving offense be served
consecutively, not concurrently, from a sentence imposed for
any other criminal act; except that a sentence imposed for
the same act of impaired driving may be imposed concurrently
if the additional conviction was based on an alternate theory
of culpability for the same act.
(6) An appropriate system of evaluation, counseling,
treatment (if required), and supervision for persons
convicted of drug impaired driving.
SEC. 6. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.
Section 403(b) of title 23, United States Code, is amended
by adding at the end the following:
``(5) New technology to detect drug use.
``(6) Research and development to improve testing
technology, including toxicology lab resources and field test
mechanisms to enable States to process toxicology evidence in
a more timely manner.
``(7) Determining per se impairment levels for controlled
substances and the compound effects of alcohol and controlled
substances on impairment to facilitate enforcement of per se
drug impaired driving laws. Research under this paragraph
shall be carried out in collaboration with the National
Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of
Health.''.
SEC. 7. GOALS FOR TRAINING.
Section 403 of title 23, United States Code, is amended by
adding at the end the following:
``(g) Training Goals.--For the purpose of enhancing the
States' ability to detect, enforce, and prosecute drug
impaired driving laws, the Secretary shall--
``(1) establish and carry out programs to enhance police
and prosecutor training efforts for enforcement of laws
relating to drug impaired driving and for development of
programs to improve enforcement of such laws; and
``(2) ensure that drug impaired driving enforcement
training or drug recognition expert programs, or both, exist
in all 50 States and the District of Columbia by December 31,
2006.''.
SEC. 8. DUTIES.
The Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration shall--
(1) advise and coordinate with other Federal agencies on
how to address the problem of driving under the influence of
an illegal drug; and
(2) conduct research on the prevention, detection, and
prosecution of driving under the influence of an illegal
drug.
SEC. 9. REPORTS.
(a) In General.--Not later than 18 months after the date of
enactment of this Act and annually thereafter, the Secretary
shall transmit to Congress a report on the progress being
made in carrying out this Act, including the amendments made
by this Act.
(b) Contents.--The Secretary shall include in the report an
assessment of the status of drug impaired driving laws in the
United States--
(1) new research and technologies in the area of drug
impaired driving enforcement;
(2) a description of the extent of the problem of driving
under the influence of an illegal drug in each State and any
available information relating thereto, including a
description of any laws relating to the problem of driving
under the influence of an illegal drug; and
(3) recommendations for addressing the problem of driving
under the influence of an illegal drug.
SEC. 10. FUNDING.
Out of amounts appropriated to carry out section 403 of
title 23, United States Code, for fiscal years 2004 through
2009, the Secretary shall use, at a minimum, $1,200,000 per
fiscal year to carry out drug impaired driving traffic safety
programs, including the provisions of this section and the
amendments made by this section.
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