It is illegal per se (in itself) to drive a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) at or above a specified level in all States. The previous level in most states had been .10 BAC for drivers 21 and older, but now 45 States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico have enacted laws that set a lower level of .08 BAC. In a 1992 Report to congress, NHTSA recommended that all States lower the illegal per se level to .08 for all drivers 21 and older. In 1998, as part of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), a new Federal incentive grant was created to encourage States to adopt a .08 BAC illegal per se level.In 2000, Congress passed the DOT Appropriations Act of FY 2001, adopting .08 BAC as the national illegal limit for impaired driving. The statute provides that States that do not adopt a conforming .08 BAC law by October 1, 2003, will be subject to a withholding 2 percent of certain highway construction funds. Each year, the withholding percentage increases by 2 percent, up to 8 percent in FY 2007 and later. Those states that adopt a conforming .08 BAC law within 4 years of any withholding will be reimbursed for those withheld funds. If a State has not adopted a conforming .08 BAC law by October 1, 2007, portions of its withheld funds shall begin to lapse and will no longer be available to the State (Author/publisher)
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