SJ291: Study; Virginia State Crime Commission; decrease in driving a motor vehicle while intoxicated.
SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 291
WHEREAS, in 2011, 28,162 persons were convicted in the Commonwealth of driving a motor vehicle while intoxicated and 23,458 of such persons were tested and found to have a blood alcohol content of .08 or greater; and
WHEREAS, in 2015, 20,768 persons were convicted in the Commonwealth of driving a motor vehicle while intoxicated and 18,801 of such persons were tested with a blood alcohol content of .08 or greater; and
WHEREAS, in 2015, the number of convictions for driving a motor vehicle while intoxicated was 73.74 percent of the number of convictions in 2011, and the number of persons tested with a blood alcohol content of .08 or greater was 80.15 percent of the number of persons tested in 2011; and
WHEREAS, between 2011 and 2015, the General Assembly enacted several laws aimed at reducing the number of violations for driving a motor vehicle while intoxicated, and the significant decline in convictions for driving a motor vehicle while intoxicated has not been studied by any agency of the Commonwealth, and no primary cause has been attributed to it; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the Virginia State Crime Commission be directed to study the causes for the decrease in convictions in the Commonwealth for driving a motor vehicle while intoxicated over the past five years.
In conducting its study, the Virginia State Crime Commission (the Commission) shall investigate and determine, to the extent possible, the role of the ignition interlock and other restrictive measures that have been enacted within the past five years that may have caused or contributed to the decrease in convictions for driving a motor vehicle while intoxicated over the past five years, including recidivism rates relating to driving a motor vehicle while intoxicated over the past five years.
Technical assistance shall be provided to the Commission by the Virginia State Police. All agencies of the Commonwealth shall provide assistance to the Commission for this study, upon request.
The Commission shall complete its meetings by November 30, 2017, and the Chairman shall submit to the Division of Legislative Automated Systems an executive summary of its findings and recommendations no later than the first day of the 2018 Regular Session of the General Assembly. The executive summary shall state whether the Commission intends to submit to the General Assembly and the Governor a report of its findings and recommendations for publication as a House or Senate document. The executive summary and report shall be submitted as provided in the procedures of the Division of Legislative Automated Systems for the processing of legislative documents and reports and shall be posted on the General Assembly's website.