LAWMAKERS DROP PLAN ON DRUNKEN DRIVING

Washington -- A team of House and Senate negotiators has scrapped a
plan to punish states that fail to adopt a national drunken-driving
standard.

The move is a defeat for Mothers Against Drunk Driving and other
groups that wanted the federal government to withhold transportation
aid from states that failed to lower their drunken-driving standard to
a blood-alcohol content of 0.08 grams per deciliter.

Wisconsin is one of more than 30 states that use a threshold of 0.10
for drunken-driving offenses. There was little support among Wisconsin
lawmakers for the proposed penalties.

In its massive six-year highway bill, the Senate included the proposal
to cut up to 10% of a state's highway construction money if it didn't
adhere to the lower standard. But the House version of the bill
included no such language, so a team of House and Senate negotiators
had to resolve the difference. The negotiators unveiled parts of their
agreement Monday.

The negotiators also agreed to set federal spending on highways and
mass-transit systems over the next six years at $200.5 billion, down
from the $217 billion in the House bill and $214 billion in the Senate
bill.

Despite the trim, the $200.5 limit will increase the federal payout to
states for highways and mass transit from $21 billion to $28 billion a
year. Federal mass-transit spending would increase from $4.5 billion
to $5.5 billion a year.

Amounts for individual states won't be known until the bill reaches
the Senate and House floors later this week.

Instead of punishing states that don't lower the drunken-driving
threshold, the bill would now offer a financial incentive for states
that do: a $500 million grant.

Critics said that wasn't enough.

"It will be a very sad day for Americans if a handful of legislators
have auctioned off the safety of their citizens in favor of the
alcohol and hospitality industries' campaign contributions," MADD
President Karolyn Nunnallee said in a statement.

Supporters of a national standard, backed by the threat of less
transportation aid, also include the White House, insurance companies
and highway safety advocates. They said tests showed that drivers were
noticeably impaired at 0.08.

At the same time, opponents of the national standard said they weren't
entirely pleased with the outcome Monday.

"We're certainly pleased that it's not blackmail, but bribery isn't
any more satisfying," said John Doyle, spokesman for the American
Beverage Institute, which represents restaurants that serve alcohol.

The group argued that the 0.08 limit would be used against moderate
social drinkers and would do nothing to reduce the bigger problem of
repeat, hard-core drunken drivers.

One of the negotiators, Rep. Tom Petri (R-Wis.), opposed the Senate
proposal to penalize states that stick with the 0.10 threshold. But he
said Monday that he didn't like the new language either.

Petri supported a House plan to reward states for taking steps to
reduce drunken-driving deaths. Those steps could include a lower
drunken-diving threshold, although it wouldn't be required.

"What's the outcome you want? If you want fewer fatalities, why not
let people get there any way they want?" Petri said.

McClatchy Newspapers contributed to this report.

Checked-by: trikydik@inil.com (trikydik)