(1) Alcohol-impaired driving fatalities represent 
approximately 1⁄3 of all highway fatalities in the 
United States in a given year. 
(2) In 2009, there were 10,839 alcohol-im-
paired driving fatalities. 
(3) An estimated 9,000 road traffic deaths 
could be prevented every year if alcohol detection 
technologies were more widely used to prevent alco-
hol-impaired drivers from operating their vehicles. 
(4) The National Highway Traffic Safety Ad-
ministration has partnered with automobile manu-
facturers to develop alcohol detection technologies 
that could be installed in vehicles to prevent drunk 
driving. 
(5) Alcohol detection technologies will not be 
widely accepted by the public unless they are mod-
erately priced, absolutely reliable, and set at a level 
that would not prevent a driver whose blood alcohol 
content is less than the legal limit from operating a 
vehicle. 
SEC. 3. DRIVER ALCOHOL DETECTION SYSTEM FOR SAFETY 
RESEARCH. 
Section 410 of title 23, United States Code, is 
amended— 
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(1) by redesignating subsections (h) and (i) as 
subsections (i) and (j), respectively; 
(2) by inserting after subsection (g) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(h) DRIVER ALCOHOL DETECTION SYSTEM.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the 
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 
shall carry out a collaborative research effort under 
chapter 301 of title 49 to continue to explore the 
feasibility and the potential benefits of, and the pub-
lic policy challenges associated with, more wide-
spread deployment of in-vehicle technology to pre-
vent alcohol-impaired driving. 
‘‘(2) REPORT.—The Administrator shall annu-
ally submit a report to the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the 
Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House 
of Representatives that— 
‘‘(A) describes progress in carrying out the 
collaborative research effort; and 
‘‘(B) includes an accounting of the use of 
Federal funds obligated or expended in carrying 
out that effort. 
‘‘(3) APPLICATION WITH OTHER LAWS.—Noth-
ing in this subsection may be construed to modify or 
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otherwise affect any Federal, State, or local govern-
ment law (civil or criminal), with respect to the op-
eration of a motor vehicle. 
‘‘(4) FUNDING.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any 
other provision of law, $12,000,000 of any 
amounts made available to the Secretary under 
section 406 for each of the fiscal years 2012 
through 2016 shall be made available to carry 
out this subsection in place of any other 
amounts that are otherwise available to carry 
out this section. 
‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—No amount of funding 
shall be made available under this paragraph 
for any fiscal year in which no funds are made 
available to carry out any program authorized 
under section 406.’’; and 
(3) in subsection (j), as redesignated— 
(A) by redesignating paragraph (3) as 
paragraph (7); 
(B) by redesignating paragraph (2) as 
paragraph (3); 
(C) by redesignating paragraphs (4) and 
(5) as paragraphs (5) and (4), respectively; 
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(D) by inserting after paragraph (1) the 
following: 
‘‘(2) ALCOHOL-IMPAIRED DRIVING.—The term 
‘alcohol-impaired driving’ means operation of a 
motor vehicle (as defined in section 30102(a)(6) of 
title 49) by an individual whose blood alcohol con-
tent is at or above the legal limit.’’; and 
(E) by inserting after paragraph (5), as re-
designated, the following: 
‘‘(6) LEGAL
LIMIT.—The term ‘legal limit’ 
means a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 percent 
or greater (as specified by chapter 163 of this title) 
or such other percentage limitation as may be estab-
lished by applicable Federal, State, or local law.’’. 
Æ 
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