Drunk driving: still a killer.

• Author: Mejeur, Jeanne

The lethal combination of alcohol and wheels continues to kill 48 people every day in this country.

Getting drunk drivers off the road is one of the highest priorities of state lawmakers: more than a hundred drunk driving laws are enacted each year. States are lowering the legal limit for intoxication and enacting stiffer penalties, but drunk driving still causes more than 17,000 deaths annually.

An example of the frustration in trying to reduce drunk driving is found in New Mexico. The state already had some of the toughest drunk driving laws in the nation when a tragic 1992 Christmas Eve accident claimed the lives of a young mother and her three daughters. State lawmakers then focused on further reducing drunk driving. In January 1993, the Legislature met for a one-day symposium, convened by House Speaker Raymond G. Sanchez, and more than 20 bills were introduced.

In its regular 1993 session, New Mexico passed more stringent measures, dropping the legal blood alcohol level for intoxication to .08 percent, making a fourth drunk driving offense a felony and setting up a statewide automated system to help courts track repeat offenders. Despite these efforts, New Mexico still has the highest number of alcohol-related fatalities in the nation at 17.4, more than double the national average of 6.9 fatalities per 100,000 people.

With stringent countermeasures on the books in most states, why is drunk driving still such a problem?

There are no simple answers, but a major reason is money. Arresting, processing, jailing and rehabilitating drunk drivers takes money. Funds for enforcement of drunk driving laws and incarceration or treatment for convicted drivers compete with a host of other demands for state dollars and often come out on the short end as states struggle to maintain basic public services.

Money for enforcement, treatment and incarceration usually comes from state general funds. Some states have tried raising additional revenue from taxes on alcohol, but those can be a tough sell if there is a strong liquor lobby in the state or if voter approval is needed.

New Mexico raised the statewide liquor tax by about a penny a drink in 1993, which brings in about $11 million a year, but the money went into the general fund rather than being designated for programs to reduce drunk driving. While appropriations for enforcement were increased, there still hasn't been enough money to pay for additional police, handle the court backlog, jail...