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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Vice President

For Immediate Release October 6, 2000

STATEMENT BY THE VICE PRESIDENT

By passing legislation to adopt .08 blood alcohol content (BAC) as a uniform drunk driving standard for our country, the United States Congress will help save many lives. Every year, thousands of lives are lost because of alcohol-related accidents. Currently 18 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico have adopted .08 BAC as the legal limit. They have seen an 8 percent drop in alcohol related traffic deaths.

The legislation approved today can help us achieve a substantial reduction in drunk driving fatalities across our land. I applaud the members of both parties who supported this measure. Senator Frank Lautenberg deserves credit for his steadfast leadership in working toward today's success. It's a major victory for the thousands of mothers and fathers, safety advocates and members of organizations like MADD who have fought for stronger drunk driving laws. And it sends a powerful message -- particularly to young people -- that we, as a nation, will not tolerate mixing alcohol and driving.

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