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Cottie Petrie-Norris: California cannot afford to let drunk driving remain an epidemic

April 29, 2025

Every time I hear about another drunk driving death, I ask myself the same question: How could we have prevented it?

California is facing a growing drunk driving crisis — and prevention must be our top priority. Since 2019, drunk driving deaths in our state have surged 53%, killing 1,479 Californians in 2022 alone. These are not accidents. These are mothers, fathers, friends, and children. These are lives stolen in tragedies that could — and should — have been prevented.

Nearly every major city in California bears the burden. Eight of the top ten U.S. cities with the highest drunk driving rates are here at home — including Sacramento, Los Angeles, San Jose, Bakersfield, Fresno, San Diego, Long Beach, and Oakland.

Across the country, someone is killed or seriously injured by an impaired driver every 79 seconds. That’s 1,092 lost lives every single day. And it’s even more alarming when you realize that, on average, a drunk driver gets behind the wheel 80 times before they are caught. Imagine the risk each one of those trips poses — not just to themselves, but to every motorist, cyclist, and pedestrian. To you, to me, and to our families.

Even more troubling, nearly half of all drunk driving arrests in California involve repeat offenders. Efforts to curb this through license suspensions have failed: 75% of drivers with suspended licenses continue to drive illegally, often with devastating consequences.

And the costs don’t end there. According to the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration data, drunk driving costs the state nearly $32 billion a year covering expenses for emergency services, law enforcement, medical care, and legal proceedings. And because California refuses to enact stronger drunk driving laws, we are leaving millions of dollars in federal funding on the table because of our lax enforcement.

This is a systemic failure. Our roads have become battlefields, and California is losing the war against drunk driving. Budget cuts, overwhelmed courts, and a lack of political urgency have all made the problem worse. Now, one of our most critical lines of defense — the ignition interlock device (IID) law — is set to expire.

These devices save lives. In 2023 alone, ignition interlock devices prevented 30,500 drunk driving attempts in California. That means 30,500 times last year, a car didn’t move — and lives were likely saved — because an interlock device stopped an impaired driver from making a tragic decision.

But unless we act, that safeguard will soon disappear.

That’s why I introduced AB 366, legislation that would require all DUI offenders to install ignition interlock devices, helping to prevent repeat offenses and save lives. With California’s IID laws set to expire in 2026, we urgently need commonsense solutions to stop this crisis from growing even worse.

We have set a catastrophe in motion. Now we must act with equal urgency and resolve. That’s why I am building a Safe California Roads Coalition — joining forces with survivors, victims’ rights advocates, road safety experts, public health leaders, and law enforcement — to fight for the action we need.

If we do not act, California will soon be the only state in the nation without an ignition interlock program — a proven deterrent to drunk driving.

Ignition interlock devices, stricter enforcement, real accountability, and constant public awareness campaigns must no longer be treated as optional. This crisis demands sweeping action, and every second of delay costs lives.

California cannot afford to let drunk driving remain an epidemic.

The time for complacency is over. It’s time to fight for safer roads, to hold offenders accountable, and to honor the memory of those we have already lost by ensuring that no more lives are needlessly cut short.

Let’s save lives with every start. Join me in this fight to pass AB 366 by visiting https://a73.asmdc.org/casaferoads.

Cottie Petrie-Norris represents California’s 73rd Assembly District.

Orange County Register

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Cottie Petrie-Norris: California cannot afford to let drunk driving remain an epidemic

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