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AB-2367 Driving under the influence: 24/7 Sobriety program.(2015-2016)



Current Version: 04/20/16 - Amended Assembly Compare Versions information image


AB2367:v96#DOCUMENT

Amended  IN  Assembly  April 20, 2016
Amended  IN  Assembly  April 11, 2016
Amended  IN  Assembly  March 28, 2016

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2015–2016 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 2367

Introduced by Assembly Member Cooley

February 18, 2016

An act to add and repeal Section 23583 of the Vehicle Code, relating to vehicles.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 2367, as amended, Cooley. Driving under the influence: 24/7 Sobriety program.
Existing law prohibits a person who has 0.08% or more, by weight, of alcohol in his or her blood from driving a vehicle. Existing law also prohibits a person, while having 0.08% or more, by weight, of alcohol in his or her blood from driving a vehicle and concurrently doing any act forbidden by law, or neglecting any duty imposed by law in driving the vehicle, when the act or neglect proximately causes bodily injury to a person other than the driver. A violation of either of these prohibitions is a crime. Existing law authorizes a court, in addition to imposing penalties and sanctions for those violations, to require the person to enroll and participate in, and successfully complete, a driving-under-the-influence program, which may include, among other things, education, group counseling, and individual interview sessions.
This bill would authorize the court to order a person convicted of a crime described above to enroll and participate in, and successfully complete, a qualified “24/7 Sobriety” monitoring program, as defined, as a condition of probation, if the program is available and deemed appropriate, and the person committed the crime within 10 years of one or more separate crimes described above that resulted in a conviction. The bill would define a “24/7 Sobriety program,” in part, as requiring a person in the program to abstain from alcohol and unauthorized controlled substances and be subject to frequent testing for alcohol and controlled substances, as specified. The bill would require a person participating in the program to pay the program costs, commensurate with the person’s ability to pay, as specified. The bill would provide that a person in the program may obtain a temporary restricted driver’s license upon proof of insurance, as specified. The bill would require the Department of Motor Vehicles to study and report to the Legislature by January 1, 2020, on the success of the 24/7 Sobriety program in reducing the driving-under-the-influence recidivism rate in counties where it is used. These provisions would be repealed on January 1, 2021.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 The Legislature finds and declares the following:
(a) Alcohol consumption and driving under the influence impose enormous health and safety costs on California. Problem drinkers account for a disproportionate share of these costs. California has had success with its current approach to driving under the influence by lowering blood alcohol concentration limits and by focusing on reducing the likelihood that individuals drive while intoxicated. However, California has been less successful at targeting those with an underlying alcohol problem that makes them more likely to consistently drive while impaired.
(b) Those with previous convictions for driving under the influence are far more likely to recidivate than first-time offenders. Moreover, these people are disproportionately involved in alcohol-related traffic fatalities and are likely to have a diagnosis of alcohol dependence.
(c) In 2005, South Dakota started a pilot program called “24/7 Sobriety” and required those arrested for or convicted of alcohol-related offenses to take twice-a-day breathalyzer tests or wear a continuous alcohol monitoring bracelet. Those who fail or skip their tests are immediately subject to certain but modest sanctions, typically a day or two in jail. After a five-county pilot project, the program grew to include more jurisdictions and offenses. Studies have found that the total number of repeat driving-under-the-influence arrests in counties operating the program fell by 12 percent, and the total number of arrests for domestic violence dropped by 9 percent.

SEC. 2.

 Section 23583 is added to the Vehicle Code, to read:

23583.
 (a) (1) In order to strengthen the posttrial options available to prosecutors and judges, the court may order a person convicted of a violation of Section 23152 or 23153 to enroll and participate in, and successfully complete, a qualified “24/7 Sobriety” monitoring program as a condition of probation, if the program is available and deemed appropriate, and the person committed the current violation within 10 years of one or more separate violations of Section 23152 or 23153 that resulted in a conviction.
(2) For purposes of this section, a “24/7 Sobriety program” requires a person in the program to abstain from alcohol and unauthorized controlled substances and requires the person to be subject to frequent testing for alcohol or controlled substances, with certain but modest punishment for violations of the program. The methodology for the program shall be evidence-based. Persons ordered into the program may also be required to participate in other driving-under-the-influence programs as provided by other law. The program shall be licensed pursuant to Section 11836 of the Health and Safety Code.
(3) For purposes of this subdivision, the term “evidence-based program” means a program that satisfies the requirements of at least two of the following:
(A) The program is included in the federal registry of evidence-based programs and practices.
(B) The program has been reported in a peer-reviewed journal as having positive effects on the primary targeted outcome.
(C) The program has been documented as effective by informed experts and other sources.
(b) As the court deems appropriate, the program may monitor alcohol or controlled substances through one or more of the following modalities:
(1) Breath testing, twice a day.
(2) Continuous transdermal alcohol monitoring in cases of hardship.
(3) Random blood, breath, sweat, urine, or oral fluid testing.
(c) Testing locations that provide the best ability to sanction a violation as close in time as reasonably feasible to the occurrence of the violation should be given preference.
(d) In order to enable all required defendants to participate, each person shall pay the program costs commensurate with the person’s ability to pay as determined pursuant to Section 11837.4 of the Health and Safety Code.
(e) The court shall not impose a program of more than 180 days in length unless the defendant tests positive for alcohol or an unauthorized controlled substance or fails to appear for a test.
(f) The court, in establishing reporting requirements, shall consult with the county probation department.

(g)(1)The court may notify the department that a person participating in the program who provides proof of insurance is eligible for a temporary restricted driver’s license.

(2)If the person fails to comply with the program’s requirements, the court shall notify the department of the individual’s noncompliance and direct the department to withdraw the person’s restricted driver’s license and reinstate the remainder of the suspension period. The person’s driving privilege shall not be restored until the person provides proof satisfactory to the department of successful completion of the program.

(3)Notwithstanding any other law, a person who receives a temporary restricted driver’s license pursuant to this section is exempt from any requirement to install an ignition interlock device on the person’s vehicle during the time the person is participating in the program.

(h)

(g) The department shall study and report to the Legislature by January 1, 2020, on the success of the 24/7 Sobriety program authorized pursuant to this section in reducing the driving-under-the-influence recidivism rate in counties where it is used. The report shall be submitted pursuant to Section 9795 of the Government Code.

(i)

(h) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2021, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2021, deletes or extends that date.