35 States Enact Graduated-Licensing Programs March 1, 2002
News Summary
In an effort to curb drunk driving, drugged driving and alcohol or other drug possession in vehicles, 35 U.S. states have enacted graduated licensing programs, Substance Abuse Funding News reported Jan. 29.Graduated licensing programs have emerged largely in response to a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration study that found that half of the 4 million new teen drivers have accidents within the first year of driving.
Graduated-licensing programs feature three stages, two of which require teens to drive with adult supervision. As a result, the risk that a teen is driving under the influence of alcohol or other drugs is greatly reduced, experts say.
States with graduated driver's licensing programs for teens are: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Vermont, and Virginia.
Michigan officials said their state's graduated-licensing law resulted in a 28 percent decline in the number of 16-year-olds in auto accidents in the first year after the law was enacted in 1997.
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