    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: WILLIAM J. CLINTON (2000, Book I)]
    [June 13, 2000]
    [Page 1138]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Statement on Senate Action on Legislation To Establish a National
    Drunk Driving Standard
    June 13, 2000

        I applaud the Senate Appropriations Committee for passing an
    important amendment that will help put the brakes on drunk driving
    across the country. I strongly support Senator Lautenberg's amendment that would help create a national standard
    for impaired driving of .08 blood alcohol content (BAC). This is a
    reasonable, commonsense standard that could save an estimated 500 lives
    a year, while still permitting adults to drink responsibly and
    moderately.
        Together, we have made great progress on reducing drunk driving in
    America. In 1999 the number of people killed in alcohol-related crashes
    hit a record low. But we still lose far too many American lives to drunk
    drivers: one American is killed in an alcohol-related crash every 33
    minutes. Over 15,700 Americans lost their lives in alcohol-related
    crashes in 1999 alone. We simply must do more.
        Senator Lautenberg's .08 BAC
    legislation will help build on our efforts to keep drunk drivers off our
    streets. I commend Senator Lautenberg for his continued leadership in
    this area, and Transportation Subcommittee Chairman Shelby for including this bipartisan, life-saving
    amendment in the FY 2001 Transportation Appropriations bill that passed
    in the full Appropriations Committee today. I urge the Congress to act
    quickly to pass this legislation to save more lives by making .08 BAC
    the legal limit across the country and without further delay.