To amend title 23, United States Code, relating to improving safety and enforcement with respect to individuals operating motor vehicles while under the influence of, or having used, drugs.

March 9, 2004

Mr. PORTMAN (for himself, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. LATOURETTE, Mr. SOUDER, and Mr. RAMSTAD) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

To amend title 23, United States Code, relating to improving safety and enforcement with respect to individuals operating motor vehicles while under the influence of, or having used, drugs.

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 Enforcement Act of 2004'.

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;

(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) License- The term `license' means any driver's license or any other license or permit to operate a motor vehicle issued under the laws of, or granted by, a State, including--

(A) any temporary license or instruction permit;

(B) the privilege of any person to drive a motor vehicle whether or not the person holds a valid license; and

(C) any nonresident's operating privilege.

(3) Revocation- The term `revocation' means the termination by formal action of the State of a person's license or privilege to operate a motor vehicle on the highways.

(4) State- The term `State' means a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the territories and possessions of the United States.

(5) Suspension- The term `suspension' means the temporary withdrawal by formal action of the State of a person's license or privilege to operate a motor vehicle on the highways.

(6) Secretary- The term `Secretary' means the Secretary of Transportation.

(7) Inhalant- The term `inhalant' means a household or commercial product that can be used by inhaling for intoxicating effect.

(8) 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 section.

(b) Mandatory Provisions- Provisions of the model statute 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 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) An appropriate system of evaluation, counseling, treatment (if required), and supervision for persons convicted of drug impaired driving.

(4) 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.

(5) 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.

(6) 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.

SEC. 6. USE OF GRANTS TO ENFORCE DRUG IMPAIRED DRIVING LAWS.

(a) General Authority- Section 410(a)(1) of title 23, United States Code, is amended by inserting `and individuals driving while under the influence of a controlled substance (as defined in section 4 of the Drug Impaired Driving Enforcement Act of 2004)' before the period at the end of the first sentence.

(b) Maintenance of Effort- Section 410(a)(2) of such title is amended by inserting `and drug impaired driving traffic safety programs' before `at or above'.

(c) Basic Grant- Section 410(b)(1) of such title is amended by inserting after subparagraph (G) the following:

`(H) Controlled substance programs- The State provides for at least one of the following programs:

`(i) Detection of controlled substances- A program to detect the unlawful presence of a controlled substance (as defined in section 4 of the Drug Impaired Driving Enforcement Act of 2004) in the body of the operator of a motor vehicle or on the person of any occupant of the vehicle, including the operator.

`(ii) Model statute- A program that adopts and enforces on a statewide basis, at a minimum, the mandatory provisions of the model drug impaired driving statute developed by the Secretary under section 5 of the Drug Impaired Driving Enforcement Act of 2004.

`(iii) Counseling and treatment- A program to ensure that individuals who are convicted of drug impaired driving are provided counseling and treatment as necessary.

`(iv) Training- A program to train law enforcement officers and prosecutors in the detection, investigation, and prosecution of drug impaired driving, including training provided by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the International Association of the Chiefs of Police, or the American Prosecutors Research Institute in drug recognition expert techniques.

`(v) Education and research- A program to advance research in the area of drug impaired driving and enhance communication of advancements in research, technology, and policy to key policymakers, prosecutors, law enforcement and judges.'.

SEC. 7. 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 (as defined in section 4 of the Drug Impaired Driving Enforcement Act of 2004) 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. 8. 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--

`(8) 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;

`(9) 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;

`(10) ensure that at least 10 percent of State and local police officers whose duties, entirely or partly, include traffic monitoring or enforcement are trained to enforce drug impaired driving laws and utilize new technologies or any recognition training by December 31, 2010; and

`(11) ensure that at least 10 percent of State prosecutors are trained to prosecute drug impaired driving laws by December 31, 2010.'.

SEC. 9. REPORTING.

(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 uniform drugged driving laws in the United States, new research and technologies in the area of drug impaired driving enforcement.

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, $2,000,000 per fiscal year to carry out drug impaired driving traffic safety programs, including the provisions of this Act and the amendments made by this Act.

END