[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.
                                 ______
                                 
      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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