LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: IN NEW LAWS, FOCUS ON ALCOHOL ABUSERS, NOT SOCIAL DRINKERS

To the Editor:

Anheuser-Busch is pleased that Governor Carnahan wants to reduce drunk driving here in Missouri. We are strongly committed to this goal as well.

Through the efforts of government, industry, and community leaders, we are making a great deal of progress in this fight. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, the number of people killed in drunk driving crashes decreased by 32 percent from 1982 to 1992, while the number of people killed in teen drunk driving crashes decreased by 60 percent.

In Missouri, according to State Highway Patrol figures, alcohol-related deaths fell from 280 in 1982 to 241 in 1992, even though the total number of fatalities (alcohol and non-alcohol related) went up. Looked at another way, the drunk driving fatality rate per miles driven in Missouri dropped dramatically from 1982 to 1992 -- more than 50 percent.

But, as the Governor recognizes, while we have come a long way in the fight against drunk driving, we still have a long way to go. If we want to continue to make progress, it is important that any drunk driving measure approved by the legislature targets those causing the problems -- alcohol abusers.

In that regard, "low tolerance" DWI laws for teens appear to be promising approaches. These measures would allow the convictions of minors who are caught driving after even one alcohol beverage. As a strong opponent of illegal teen drinking, we support measures like these which are targeted approaches and show promise of working.

On the other hand, reducing the blood alcohol content (BAC) limit to .08 does not target abusers and thus is a step in the wrong direction. Such a move ignores the real problem -- the small percentage of consumers who repeatedly drive with extremely high blood alcohol levels (.15, .20, or even higher) and cause the vast majority of drunk driving crashes.

In addition, evidence is lacking that such measures would have any impact on the alcohol crash problem. Instead, they focus law enforcement efforts on social drinkers. With government's limited resources, it doesn't make sense to concentrate our efforts -- and our money -- on social drinkers, who are already getting the message about drunk driving. Doing so will only create a whole new class of potential criminals, making it more unlikely that the real alcohol abusers will be caught.

Similarly, we haven't seen evidence that extending an open container law to all passengers would reduce drunk driving. We support making it illegal for the driver to possess an open container of alcohol. However, the proposal currently being discussed will discriminate against the responsible consumers, like those who appoint a designated driver to take a group in a van over to Columbia for a Missouri Tiger football game. Again, this just doesn't focus on alcohol abusers.

We look forward to working with the Governor as we pursue our common goal of fighting the alcohol abuse of drunk driving, particularly teen drunk driving.

STEPHEN K. LAMBRIGHT

Vice President

Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc.

St. Louis