DeWine Applauds 25 Years of Madd Saving Lives

DEWINE APPLAUDS 25 YEARS OF MADD SAVING LIVES

"I congratulate MADD on their successful 25 years of working to save lives, counsel victims and their families, and prevent drunk driving. We all know the truth - that drinking and driving is deadly, and MADD is doing all they can to get drunk-drivers off our roads. Their efforts truly make a life-saving difference and raise awareness about alcohol impaired driving," said Senator Mike DeWine (R-OH).

"I learned about the effectiveness of MADD when I was a State Senator back in the 1980s. In my home county in Ohio, a 7 year-old boy was tragically killed by a drunken driver. As a result, I introduced a bill in our state legislature - a tough drunk driving bill. Without the support of MADD and MADD members who went to the legislature, lobbied members, testified at hearings and wrote letters, that bill simply would not have passed.

"With MADD's assistance I worked to have a national standard of .08 blood alcohol content included in the FY01 Transportation Appropriations bill. States were given four years to enact a .08 BAC law or they would start to lose federal transportation funding. Last year, we finally reached the goal of having all 50 states enact a .08 BAC law. MADD's support of lower BAC levels, high-profile sobriety checkpoints, and strict enforcement of safety belt laws has brought the issue to the forefront.

"But MADD knows that it's not only tough laws and stiff penalties that detour drunk-driving. It takes a combined effort at the legislative level, at the enforcement level, and at the community level to effectively reduce the number of impaired drivers who get behind the wheel. MADD's strategic plan to reduce fatalities resulting from drunk drivers by 25 percent is an ambitious but achievable goal. Through enforcement, deterrence, and education, together we can make our roads and our communities safer."

http://dewine.senate.gov/