#Legislate Responsibly

Each year, we give awards to members of Congress, Attorneys General and state legislators to recognize their work to stop drunk driving and prevent underage drinking. As 2016 state legislative sessions come to a close, we want to take a moment to recognize the state legislators we honored for their dedication and leadership on these issues.

This year, state legislators were very involved in preventing drunk driving and underage drinking. Some of the successful legislation includes: Passed mandatory ignition interlock laws for first time offenders; Medical Amnesty (sometimes called Good Samaritan) bills were passed; penalties were enhanced for repeat DUI offenders and for people driving drunk with children in their cars; social hosting laws were strengthened for adults knowingly providing alcohol to minors in their own dwelling; the importance of assessment for drunk drivers was recognized; innovative ways to address drugged impaired driving were introduced. In other states, legislators fought off efforts to weaken DUI laws.

We are proud to honor these legislators for their efforts in 2016:

• Jesse Stone (R-GA-23)
• Thomas Rice (R-GA-95)
• Jesse Petrea (R-GA-166)
• John Kennedy (R-GA-18)
• Michael Dugan (R-GA-30)
• Butch Miller (R-GA-49)
• Caroline Troy (R-ID-05)
• Patti Lodge (R-ID-11)
• Kelley Packer (R-ID-28)
• Tom Phillips (R-KS-67)
• Tom Hawk (D-KS-22)
• Dennis Parrett (D-KY-10)
• Reginald Thomas (D-KY-13)
• Danny Carroll (R-KY-02)
• Anthony Muse (D-MD-26)
• Will Smith Jr. (D-MD-20)
• Jamie Raskin (D-MD-20)
• Ben Kramer (D-MD-19)
• Brian Feldman (D-MD-15)
• David Fraser-Hidalgo (D-MD-15)
• Geraldine Valentino-Smith (D-MD-23A)
• Bob Cassilly (R-MD-34)
• Cheryl Kagan (D-MD-17)
• Bobby Zirkin (D-MD-11)
• Klint Kesto (R-MI-39)
• Tom Casperson (R-MI-38)
• Rick Jones (R-MI-28)
• John Rafferty (R-PA-44)
• Keith Greiner (R-PA-43)
• Lloyd Smucker (R-PA-13)
• Scott Munsterman (R-SD-07)

Austin Rodriquez is an Associate in the Government Relations and Traffic Safety department. His responsibilities include supporting state legislation, preparing policy documents, building relationships with State and Federal elected officials and a variety of other tasks such as accounting, finances and event logistics.