DUI/DWI LAWS as of October 2008
All 50 states and the District of Columbia have per se laws defining it as a crime to drive with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) at or above a proscribed level, 0.08 percent.
License suspension or revocation traditionally follows conviction for alcohol-impaired driving. Under a procedure called administrative license suspension, licenses are taken before conviction when a driver fails or refuses to take a chemical test. Because administrative license suspension laws are independent of criminal procedures and are invoked right after arrest, they've been found to be more effective than traditional post-conviction sanctions. Administrative license suspension laws are in place in 41 states and the District of Columbia.
Some offenders in 47 states and the District of Columbia are permitted to drive only if their vehicles have been equipped with ignition interlocks. These devices analyze a driver's breath and disable the ignition if the driver has been drinking.
In 32 states, multiple offenders may have to forfeit their vehicles.
Laws prohibiting the driver, passengers, or both from possessing an open container of alcohol in the passenger compartment of a vehicle are in place in 43 states and the District of Columbia.
| State |
BAC defined as illegal per se |
Administrative license suspension 1st offense? |
Restore driving privileges during suspension? |
Do penalties include interlock |
Vehicle forfeiture for multiple offenses |
Open container laws |
Alabama |
0.08 |
90days |
no |
no |
no |
driver/passenger |
Alaska |
0.08 |
90days |
after 30 days1 |
yes |
yes |
driver |
Arizona |
0.08 |
90days |
after 30days1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Arkansas |
0.08 |
120days |
yes1 |
yes |
yes |
no |
California |
0.08 |
4months |
after 30days1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Colorado |
0.08 |
3months |
yes1 |
yes |
no |
driver/passenger |
Connecticut |
0.08 |
90days |
yes1 |
yes |
no |
no |
Delaware |
0.08 |
3months |
no |
yes |
no |
no |
District of Columbia |
0.08 |
2-90days |
yes1 |
yes |
no |
driver/passenger |
Florida |
0.08 |
6months |
after 30days1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Georgia |
0.08 |
1year |
yes1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Hawaii |
0.08 |
3months |
after 30days1 |
yes |
no |
driver/passenger |
Idaho |
0.08 |
90days |
after 30days1 |
yes |
no |
driver/passenger |
Illinois |
0.08 |
3months |
after 30days1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Indiana |
0.08 |
180days |
after 30days1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Iowa |
0.08 |
180days |
after 90days1 |
yes |
no |
driver/passenger |
Kansas |
0.08 |
30days |
no |
yes |
no |
driver |
Kentucky |
0.08 |
no |
notapplicable |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Louisiana |
0.08 |
90days |
after 30days1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Maine |
0.08 |
90days |
yes1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Maryland |
0.08 |
45days |
yes1 |
yes |
no |
driver/passenger |
Massachusetts |
0.08 |
90days |
no |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Michigan |
0.082 |
no |
notapplicable |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Minnesota |
0.08 |
90days |
after 15days1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Mississippi |
0.08 |
90days |
no |
yes |
yes |
no |
Missouri |
0.08 |
30days |
no |
yes |
yes |
no |
Montana |
0.08 |
no |
notapplicable |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Nebraska |
0.08 |
90days |
after 30days1 |
yes |
no |
driver/passenger |
Nevada |
0.08 |
90days |
after 45days1 |
yes |
no |
driver/passenger |
New Hampshire |
0.08 |
6months |
no |
yes |
no |
driver/passenger |
New Jersey |
0.08 |
no |
notapplicable |
yes |
no |
driver/passenger |
New Mexico |
0.08 |
90days |
after 30days1 |
yes |
no |
driver/passenger |
New York |
0.08 |
variable3 |
yes1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
North Carolina |
0.08 |
30days |
after 10days1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
North Dakota |
0.08 |
91days |
after 30days1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Ohio |
0.08 |
90days |
after 15days1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Oklahoma |
0.08 |
180days |
yes1 |
yes |
yes |
driver |
Oregon |
0.08 |
90days |
after 30days1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Pennsylvania |
0.08 |
no |
notapplicable |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Rhode Island |
0.08 |
no |
notapplicable |
yes |
yes |
driver |
South Carolina |
0.08 |
no |
notapplicable |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
South Dakota |
0.08 |
no |
notapplicable |
no |
no |
driver/passenger |
Tennessee |
0.08 |
no |
notapplicable |
yes |
yes |
driver4 |
Texas |
0.08 |
90days |
yes1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Utah |
0.08 |
90days |
no |
yes |
no |
driver/passenger |
Vermont |
0.08 |
90days |
no |
no |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Virginia |
0.08 |
7days |
no |
yes |
yes |
no |
Washington |
0.08 |
90days |
after 30days1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
West Virginia |
0.08 |
6months |
after 30days1 |
yes |
no |
no |
Wisconsin |
0.08 |
6months |
yes1 |
yes |
yes |
driver/passenger |
Wyoming |
0.08 |
90days |
yes1 |
yes |
no |
driver/passenger |
1 Drivers usually must demonstratespecial hardship to justify restoring privileges during suspension, and thenprivileges often are restricted.
2 The 0.08 per se BAC law in Michigan contains a sunset clause which states that the legal BAC will revert to 0.10 on October 1, 2013.
3 In New York, administrative licensesuspension lasts until prosecution is complete.
4 In Tennessee, municipalities andcounties can prohibit passengers from possessing an open container.
©1996-2004, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, Highway Loss Data Institute | http://www.iihs.org
Last modified: Oct-2008
Please note, that this information is for general informational purposes only and is subject to change without notice. At any given time one or more states may be reviewing or revising their drunk driving laws, and the legal limits they set for BAC while operating a motor vehicle. Therefore, if you need this information for legal purposes, please confirm the information shown above for your state with your state's own department of transportation or with a state or local police agency. |
DRUNK DRIVING LAWS BY STATE