Liam's Life Foundation

California Assembly Bill 1713, known as "Liam's Law," would lower the legal blood alcohol content (BAC) driving limit from 0.08% to 0.05% — making it illegal to operate a vehicle with a BAC at or above that threshold. The bill was co-authored by Assembly Member Autumn Burke and Senator Jerry Hill. Utah is currently the only U.S. state with a 0.05% BAC limit, though the standard is already law in more than 100 countries worldwide, including most of Europe and Australia. Research published in peer-reviewed public health literature and supported by organizations such as Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) indicates that driver impairment begins well below 0.08%, and that lowering the legal limit to 0.05% would prevent alcohol-related crashes, injuries, and fatalities. MADD has formally endorsed AB 1713 and called for its passage alongside ignition interlock requirements for all DUI offenders in California. Constituents are urging their California state legislators — both Assembly Members and State Senators — to support and vote in favor of AB 1713 (Liam's Law) to bring California's DUI threshold in line with evidence-based safety standards and save lives on the road.

transportation · traffic-safety · drunk-driving · california · public-safety · state · alcohol-policy

Every year, thousands of Americans are killed in alcohol-impaired driving crashes. The United States currently sets its federal blood alcohol content (BAC) driving limit at 0.08 g/dL — a threshold that research consistently shows is still dangerous. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), and the Community Preventive Services Task Force have all identified lowering the BAC limit to 0.05 g/dL as an effective, evidence-based intervention to reduce traffic fatalities. The evidence is compelling. When the U.S. previously lowered the BAC limit from 0.10 to 0.08, multiple studies documented significant reductions in impaired-driving fatal crashes. Utah became the first state to adopt a 0.05 limit in 2018, and research from UC Irvine's medical school found it significantly reduced drunk driving fatalities. More than 100 countries worldwide already use a 0.05 BAC standard, and a 2019 NHTSA survey found that 53% of U.S. drivers support making the same change nationally. Congress has the authority to incentivize or mandate that all states adopt a 0.05 BAC limit — just as it did in 2001 when it conditioned federal highway funding on states lowering their limits from 0.10 to 0.08. Constituents are urging their federal representatives to support legislation that would lower the national BAC driving limit to 0.05 g/dL, saving thousands of lives each year.

traffic-safety · drunk-driving · transportation · us-congress · public-health · federal-legislation · federal