File #: Res 1466-2008    Version: * Name: Declaring August 24, 2008 as DUI/Driving Under the Influence Awareness Day in NYC.
Type: Resolution Status: Filed
Committee: Committee on Transportation
On agenda: 6/12/2008
Enactment date: Law number:
Title: Resolution declaring August 24, 2008 as DUI/Driving Under the Influence Awareness Day in New York City.
Sponsors: John C. Liu, Gale A. Brewer, Leroy G. Comrie, Jr., Lewis A. Fidler, Sara M. Gonzalez, Darlene Mealy, Michael C. Nelson, Annabel Palma, Domenic M. Recchia, Jr., James Sanders, Jr., Kendall Stewart, James Vacca, David I. Weprin
Council Member Sponsors: 13
Attachments: 1. Committee Report 6/19/08, 2. Hearing Testimony 6/19/08, 3. Hearing Transcript 6/19/08

Res. No. 1466

 

Resolution declaring August 24, 2008 as DUI/Driving Under the Influence Awareness Day in New York City.

 

By Council Members Liu, Brewer, Comrie, Fidler, Gonzalez, Mealy, Nelson, Palma, Recchia Jr., Sanders Jr., Stewart, Vacca and Weprin

 

Whereas, Driving Under the Influence (DUI) means driving a motor vehicle while impaired by alcohol or certain chemical substances; and

Whereas, A person’s judgment, coordination and ability to operate a motor vehicle diminish when he or she is under the influence of alcohol or certain chemical substances; and

Whereas, According to DrunkDrivingLaws.com, every state in the country has strict DUI penalties in place to punish and deter people from drinking or using drugs and driving; and

Whereas, For example, Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) is a crime in New York State, the penalties for which include the loss of driving privileges, fines and a possible jail term; and

Whereas, Despite laws in every state that aggressively address drunk or drugged driving, such driving still causes far too many serious and fatal accidents that maim or kill people each year; and

                     Whereas, Data released in December 2007 by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) indicated that from 2001-2005, an average of 36 fatalities occurred each day on United States roadways as a result of crashes involving an alcohol impaired driver, increasing to 45 per day during the Christmas period and to 54 per day over the New Year Day’s holiday; and

            Whereas, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) indicate that in 2006, an estimated 17,602 people died in alcohol-related traffic crashes-an average of one every 30 minutes, comprising 41 percent of the 42,642 total traffic fatalities that year; and

Whereas, NHTSA statistics also indicate that more than half of the 414 child passengers ages 14 and younger who died in alcohol-related crashes nationwide during 2005 were riding with a drinking driver; and

Whereas, MADD data also indicates more than one-third of New York State’s approximately 1,500 traffic deaths in 2003 involved alcohol-impaired drivers; and

Whereas, According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health July 2005 report, during 2002 and 2003, approximately 17 percent, on average, of adult drivers ages 21 or older reported that they had driven while under the influence of alcohol or illicit drugs  during the prior year; and

Whereas, DUI tragedies are totally preventable, and one of the ways to reduce this toll of deaths and injuries is to raise awareness of the dangers of driving while impaired by alcohol or illicit drugs; now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York declares August 24, 2008 as DUI/Driving Under the Influence Awareness Day in New York City.            

MB

LS #4839

5/28/08