ROADS SAFE Act of 2010

Research of Alcohol Detection Systems for Stopping Alcohol-related Fatalities Everywhere Act of 2010 or the ROADS SAFE Act of 2010 - Directs the Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to carry out a collaborative research effort to continue to explore, and report to specified congressional committees on, the feasibility and the potential benefits of, and the public policy challenges associated with, more widespread deployment of in-vehicle technology to prevent alcohol-impaired driving.

[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4890 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4890

  To direct the Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration to carry out a collaborative research effort to prevent 
     drunk driving injuries and fatalities, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 19, 2010

  Mr. Ehlers (for himself and Mr. Sarbanes) introduced the following 
    bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and 
                             Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To direct the Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration to carry out a collaborative research effort to prevent 
     drunk driving injuries and fatalities, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Research of Alcohol Detection 
Systems for Stopping Alcohol-Related Fatalities Everywhere Act of 
2010'' or the ``ROADS SAFE Act of 2010''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Alcohol-impaired driving fatalities represent 
        approximately \1/3\ of all highway fatalities in the United 
        States in a given year.
            (2) In 2008, there were 11,773 alcohol-impaired driving 
        fatalities.
            (3) An estimated 9,000 road traffic deaths could be 
        prevented every year if alcohol detection technologies were 
        more widely used to prevent alcohol-impaired drivers from 
        operating their vehicles.
            (4) The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has 
        partnered with automobile manufacturers to develop alcohol 
        detection technologies that could be installed in vehicles to 
        prevent drunk driving.
            (5) Alcohol detection technologies will not be widely 
        accepted by the public unless they are moderately priced, 
        absolutely reliable, and set at a level that would not prevent 
        a driver whose blood alcohol content is less than the legal 
        limit from operating a vehicle.

SEC. 3. DRIVER ALCOHOL DETECTION SYSTEM FOR SAFETY RESEARCH.

    (a) In General.--The Administrator of the National Highway Traffic 
Safety Administration shall carry out a collaborative research effort 
to continue to explore the feasibility and the potential benefits of, 
and the public policy challenges associated with, more widespread 
deployment of in-vehicle technology to prevent alcohol-impaired 
driving.
    (b) Reports.--The Administrator shall submit a report annually to 
the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 
and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives--
            (1) describing progress in carrying out the collaborative 
        research effort; and
            (2) including an accounting for the use of Federal funds 
        obligated or expended in carrying out that effort.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act, the following definitions apply:
            (1) Alcohol-impaired driving.--The term ``alcohol-impaired 
        driving'' means operation of a motor vehicle (as defined in 
        section 30102(a)(6) of title 49, United States Code) by an 
        individual whose blood alcohol content is at or above the legal 
        limit.
            (2) Legal limit.--The term ``legal limit'' means a blood 
        alcohol concentration of 0.08 percent or greater (as specified 
        by section 163 of title 23, United States Code) or such other 
        percentage limitation as may be established by applicable 
        Federal, State, or local law.

SEC. 5. APPLICATION WITH OTHER LAWS.

    Nothing in this Act shall be construed to modify or otherwise 
affect any Federal, State, or local government law, civil or criminal, 
with respect to the operation of a motor vehicle.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) In General.--There is authorized to be appropriated out of the 
Highway Trust Fund (other than the Mass Transit Account) $12,000,000 
for each of fiscal years 2011 through 2015 to carry out the 
collaborative research effort under section 3(a).
    (b) Applicability of Title 23.--Funds made available under 
subsection (a) shall be available for obligation and administered in 
the same manner as if the funds were apportioned under chapter 1 of 
title 23, United States Code, except that the Federal share payable on 
account of a project or activity carried out using the funds shall be 
100 percent.
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