Help control the higher-risk driver

Over half of all alcohol-related crashes involved a driver with a BAC over .15. Additionally, repeat DUI offenders make up one-third of all DUI arrests. We need to address high-BAC and repeat offenders and this bill would promote a comprehensive plan.

Help law enforcement save lives

Enhanced enforcement mobilizations for seat belt usage have encouraged 39 million more Americans to buckle up and can reduce alcohol-related fatalities by 20 percent. Get your federal representatives to support law enforcement mobilizations nationwide.

Help MADD get science-based national legislation

MADD is working at the federal level to make sure that high-BAC and repeat offenders get appropriate sanctions, that enforcement is funded, and that states are held accountable for their progress on drunk driving. Please help us support these goals.

Join the fight against underage drinking

Over ten million people under the age of 21 have consumed alcohol in the last month. Underage drinking is an epidemic. The National Academy of Sciences just released a report detailing some of the solutions. Tell Congress to act on the NAS report.

Support a victims' rights constitutional amendment

Criminal defendants have almost two dozen constitutional rights. Victims have none. We need a constitutional amendment to give victims the right to be informed, present, and heard at every stage of the process.

Support children's safety

Last year, 400 children were killed last year in alcohol-related crashes, most while riding in the car with an alcohol-impaired driver. However, no state has all of the tools they need to combat DUI child endangerment. Help end this child abuse.

Stop open alcohol containers in vehicles

Thirty-six states have federally compliant laws against having open alcoholic beverage containers in moving vehicles. These states have 5% less alcohol-related fatalities on average. Help get an open container law in your state.

Support better enforcement of seat belt laws.

If everyone in the US used seat belts, over 9000 lives would be saved every year. However, over 30 states still do not allow for primary enforcement of seat belt laws that would increase seat belt usage by over 10%. Help us change this.

Help ease teens into driving.

Teenagers who are just learned how to drive are more at risk for crashes than any other age group. Graduated driver's licensing helps by introducing teens to driving step-by-step and saves lives as a result.

Support a comprehensive repeat offender policy.

About one-third of all DUI arrests are of people who have committed a DUI previously. These are offenders who have been given the opportunity to mend their ways, but have not. We need comprehensive sanctions to deter the repeat offender.

Improve the enforcement of DUI/DWI laws

Sobriety checkpoints are an effective, constitutional way to stop drunk driving that reduce alcohol-related fatalities by an average of 20%. However, some states still do not do sobriety checkpoints.

Support a comprehensive high-BAC driver policy.

Over half of all alcohol-related fatalities involve someone with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .15 or higher. These high-BAC offenders require additional policies to deter them from being a menace on the roads.

Support a state victims' rights constitutional amendment

Criminal defendants have almost two dozen constitutional rights. Victims have none. We need a constitutional amendment in 18 states to give victims the right to be informed, present, and heard at every stage of the process.

Dear friend,

According to a national survey published in 2003, over ten million people under the legal drinking age of 21 had consumed alcohol within a one-month period.   Almost seven million of them were binge drinkers and over two million were heavy drinkers.   Right now, underage drinkers are responsible for consuming almost 20 percent of all alcohol sold in the United States. Underage drinking is at near epidemic proportions.

Underage drinking is not just a harmless "rite of passage."  Compared to their non-drinking peers, underage drinkers are more likely to:

·         Drive under the influence of alcohol

·         Ride with a drinking driver

·         Get into fights

·         Drop out of school

·         Commit a violent crime

·         Be a victim of a violent crime

·         Commit suicide

·         Become alcohol dependent

These crimes and other negative impacts bring the cost of underage drinking to $53 billion per year.

The National Academy of Sciences, guided by many of the top public health researchers in the country, just released an important report that compiles and examines all of the research on underage drinking.  This prestigious group recommends science-based, common sense solutions that work to reduce underage drinking, including:

·         Creating a national media campaign focused on encouraging adults not to provide alcohol to youths

·         Strengthening the alcohol advertising codes that allow youths to see more than 2,000 alcohol ads per year

·         Enacting minimum drinking age laws that prohibit purchase, attempted purchase, and consumption of alcohol by youth

·         Focusing the government and communities on underage drinking.

Please write your federal representatives and tell them you would like hearings and action on the NAS report's recommendations.