A group of California legislators last week gave early approval to a bill that would require anyone convicted of driving under the influence to install a breathalyzer on their vehicle.
The bill from Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris, D-Irvine, has broad bipartisan support and expands California’s existing pilot program, which requires those who have at least two DUI convictions to install what’s called an ignition interlock device on their cars for a designated period of time. These prevent cars from starting if the device detects a blood alcohol content above a certain limit.
“Too many families are forced to endure unimaginable loss because of preventable drunk driving crashes,” Petrie-Norris said of her bill.
“There should be no ‘first-time free pass’ — accountability must begin with the first conviction, before offenders become repeat threats,” Petrie-Norris said. “California’s current system is failing too many families. [Assembly Bill] 1830 is about prevention, accountability and making sure no family has to experience another avoidable tragedy.”
During a hearing on the bill last week, Petrie-Norris was joined by Colin Campbell, whose kids, Ruby and Hart, were killed by a drunken driver in 2019 on the way to Joshua Tree.
Campbell told lawmakers the driver who hit their family that night already had her license suspended, a result of a previous DUI conviction.
“Nothing would have stopped her except a bill like 1830,” Campbell said.
AB 1830 also has support from a variety of public safety organizations, including the California Police Chiefs Association, the California State Sheriffs Association and the California Professional Firefighters. It’s backed by the cities of Costa Mesa and Irvine, as well as the Fullerton Police Officers’ Association and the Newport Beach Police Association, according to the bill analysis.
Sen. Bob Archuleta, D-Pico Rivera, whose district includes Brea and Placentia, is a co-author of the bill. Others include Assemblymembers Blanca Pacheco, D-Downey; Sharon Quirk-Silva, D-Fullerton; and Avelino Valencia, D-Anaheim.
But it’s opposed by the California Public Defenders Association and the ACLU California Action.
The California Public Defenders Association, in the bill analysis, said the effort would enact a “one-size-fits-all penalty” regardless of circumstances.
“AB 1830 removes the ability of judges to exercise reasoned judgment in individual DUI cases,” the group said.
“Judicial discretion exists because cases differ,” the association continued. “Courts are often best positioned to determine whether an (ignition interlock device) meaningfully advances public safety or whether another sanction — such as license restrictions, alcohol education programs or probation conditions — would be more effective.”
The bill passed unanimously out of the Assembly Public Safety Committee last week and will be heard in Appropriations next.
In other news:
• A bill from Sen. Steven Choi, R-Irvine, to expand community-based education for older adults saw unanimous support in the Senate Committee on Health last week. The bill would let local health departments establish programs for older adults in collaboration with faith institutions, libraries, school districts and other community organizations.
The idea, according to Choi, is to bolster education and services tailored to California’s growing population of adults who are 55 and older.
“California’s seniors deserve access to the tools and resources they need to remain active, connected and independent,” Choi said. “[Senate Bill] 971 empowers local communities to deliver practical, meaningful programs that improve quality of life while remaining fiscally responsible.”
• Sen. Catherine Blakespear, D-Encinitas, is behind a new effort to make changes to the California Environmental Quality Act, the state’s landmark environmental law more commonly referred to as CEQA. A new bill from Blakespear, who represents communities in southern Orange County, seeks to balance last year’s CEQA reforms with other environmental protections.
More specifically, it would repeal a CEQA exemption that applies to all advanced manufacturing facilities, which can broadly encompass a wide range of fields, including chemical, pesticide and plastic manufacturing and strip mining, she said. Those areas have generally been subjected to CEQA review, which she said is still needed given their impacts on public health and the environment.
“Refining and reforming CEQA is important so that it works the way we want it to for modern California, but we must be thoughtful about it,” Blakespear said.
She said her bill “ensures that when new industrial facilities are built, that the environment, workers and the communities living next door are protected as they should be.”