SR151 SD1

WHEREAS, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Commission, about thirty-seven people in the United States die in drunk-driving crashes every day; and

WHEREAS, that number equates to one person dying every thirty-nine minutes; and

WHEREAS, in 2022, 13,524 people died in alcohol-impaired driving traffic deaths across the United States; and

WHEREAS, from 2011 to 2022, at least forty percent of traffic fatalities in Hawaii involved alcohol; and

WHEREAS, research published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs in 2012 shows that if a person's blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is between 0.05 and 0.08 percent, their chances of being killed in a crash where only the person's vehicle is involved are at least seven times higher than if the person had not been drinking at all; and

WHEREAS, reducing the legal BAC limit to 0.05 percent would likely lead to fewer instances of impaired driving and its consequences; and

WHEREAS, a 0.05 percent BAC limit would serve as a general deterrent to impaired driving and affects all would-be drinking drivers; and

WHEREAS, more than one hundred countries have reduced their legal BAC levels to 0.05 percent or lower, including Australia, Austria, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2025, that the Department of Transportation is urged to establish a working group on lowering the legal limit of blood alcohol concentration to 0.05 grams of alcohol per one hundred milliliters of blood with the intent of prioritizing safety and saving lives on Hawaii's roads; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group is requested to consist of the following members:

(1) The Director of Transportation or the Director's designee;

(2) A Representative from the Office of the Public Defender;

(3) A representative from the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney of the City and County of Honolulu;

(4) A representative from the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney of Kauai;

(5) A representative from the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney of Hawaii; and

(6) A representative from the Department of the Prosecuting Attorney of Maui; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group is requested to invite the following individuals to participate as members of the working group:

(1) A representative from the National Transportation Safety Board;

(2) A representative from the Hawaii Alcohol Policy Alliance;

(3) A representative from the field of traffic safety and research with expertise in alcohol-impaired driving;

(4) A representative of Hawaii establishments selling alcohol;

(5) A representative of Hawaii restaurants;

(6) A representative from an organization doing work on reducing alcohol-related fatalities; and

(7) Any other members as deemed appropriate; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group is requested to examine data to identify:

(1) The number of alcohol-related fatalities and injuries per year in Hawaii;

(2) The number of expected fatalities and injuries per year involving drivers with a blood alcohol concentration of .05 grams of alcohol per one hundred milliliters of blood, based on real world results in other places;

(3) How alcohol and food revenues are affected in other jurisdictions that require drivers to have a blood alcohol concentration of .05 grams of alcohol per one hundred milliliters of blood;

(4) How much revenue could be expected to be gained or lost by decreasing the legal blood alcohol concentration to .05 grams of alcohol per one hundred milliliters of blood in Hawaii;

(5) Mitigating steps to help bars and restaurants adapt to any potential loss of revenue or options that might be recommended to address any loss; and

(6) Any recommendations to increase public awareness and phase‑in legislation to decrease the legal blood alcohol concentration for driving to .05 grams of alcohol per one hundred milliliters of blood; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group is requested to submit a report to the Legislature of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2026; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chair of the National Transportation Safety Board, Governor, Director of Transportation, Public Defender, and Prosecuting Attorneys of each county.

Report Title:

Department of Transportation; Blood Alcohol Concentration; Working Group

THE SENATE	S.R. NO.	151
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025		S.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII