Articles - Blood Alcohol Concentration Limits for Enforcement of Impaired Driving Laws -- U.S. States - 2001
Laws for DWI and DUI vary from state-to-state. Below is a chart listing blood alcohol content BAC limits, license suspension, ignition interlock requirements and forfeiture penalties.
All 50 states and the District of Columbia have per se laws defining it as a crime to drive with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) at or above a proscribed level, 0.08 percent.
License suspension or revocation traditionally follows conviction for alcohol-impaired driving. Under a procedure called administrative license suspension, licenses are taken before conviction when a driver fails or refuses to take a chemical test. Because administrative license suspension laws are independent of criminal procedures and are invoked right after arrest, they've been found to be more effective than traditional post-conviction sanctions. Forty-one states and the District of Columbia have administrative license suspension laws.
Forty-five states permit some offenders to drive only if their vehicles have been equipped with ignition interlocks. These devices analyze a driver's breath and disable the ignition if the driver has been drinking.
In 30 states, multiple offenders may forfeit vehicles that are driven while impaired by alcohol.
Forty-three states and Washington D.C. have laws prohibiting the driver, passengers or both from possessing an open container of alcohol in the passenger compartment of a vehicle.
| State |
BAC Defined as illegal per se |
Administrative license suspension 1st offense? |
Restore driving privileges during suspension? |
Do penalties include interlock/forfeiture? |
Open container laws |
| Alabama |
0.08 |
90 days |
no |
no/no |
driver/passenger |
| Alaska |
0.08 |
90 days |
after 30 days |
yes/yes |
driver |
| Arizona |
0.08 |
90 days |
after 30 days |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Arkansas |
0.08 |
120 days |
yes |
yes/yes |
-- |
| California |
0.08 |
4 months |
after 30 days |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Colorado |
0.08 |
3 months |
yes |
yes/no |
-- |
| Connecticut |
0.08 |
90 days |
yes |
no/no |
-- |
| Delaware |
0.08 |
3 months |
no |
yes/no |
-- |
| District of Columbia |
0.08 |
2-90 days |
yes |
yes/no |
driver/passenger |
| Florida |
0.08 |
6 months |
after 30 days |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| State |
BAC Defined as illegal per se |
Administrative license suspension 1st offense? |
Restore driving privileges during suspension? |
Do penalties include interlock/forfeiture? |
Open container laws |
| Georgia |
0.08 |
1 year |
yes |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Hawaii |
0.08 |
3 months |
after 30 days |
yes/no |
driver/passenger |
| Idaho |
0.08 |
90 days |
after 30 days |
yes/no |
driver/passenger |
| Illinois |
0.08 |
3 months |
after 30 days |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Indiana |
0.08 |
180 days |
after 30 days |
yes/no |
driver |
| Iowa |
0.08 |
180 days |
after 90 days |
yes/no |
driver/passenger |
| Kansas |
0.08 |
30 days |
no |
yes/no |
driver |
| Kentucky |
0.08 |
-- |
-- |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Louisiana |
0.08 |
90 days |
after 30 days |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Maine |
0.08 |
90 days |
yes |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| State |
BAC Defined as illegal per se |
Administrative license suspension 1st offense? |
Restore driving privileges during suspension? |
Do penalties include interlock/forfeiture? |
Open container laws |
| Maryland |
0.08 |
45 days |
yes |
yes/no |
driver/passenger |
| Massachusetts |
0.08 |
90 days |
no |
no/no |
driver/passenger |
| Michigan |
0.08 |
-- |
-- |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Minnesota |
0.08
(eff. 08/01/05) |
90 days |
after 15 days |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Mississippi |
0.08 |
90 days |
no |
yes/yes |
-- |
| Missouri |
0.08 |
30 days |
no |
yes/yes |
-- |
| Montana |
0.08 |
-- |
-- |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Nebraska |
0.08 |
90 days |
after 30 days |
yes/no |
driver/passenger |
| Nevada |
0.08 |
90 days |
after 45 days |
yes/no |
driver/passenger |
| New Hampshire |
0.08 |
6 months |
no |
yes/no |
driver/passenger |
| State |
BAC Defined as illegal per se |
Administrative license suspension 1st offense? |
Restore driving privileges during suspension? |
Do penalties include interlock/forfeiture? |
Open container laws |
| New Jersey |
0.08 |
-- |
-- |
yes/no |
driver/passenger |
| New Mexico |
0.08 |
90 days |
after 30 days |
yes/no |
driver/passenger |
| New York |
0.08 |
variable |
yes |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| North Carolina |
0.08 |
30 days |
after 10 days |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| North Dakota |
0.08 |
91 days |
after 30 days |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Ohio |
0.08 |
90 days |
after 15 days |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Oklahoma |
0.08 |
180 days |
yes |
yes/yes |
driver |
| Oregon |
0.08 |
90 days |
after 30 days |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Pennsylvania |
0.08 |
-- |
-- |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Rhode Island |
0.08 |
-- |
-- |
yes/yes |
driver |
| State |
BAC Defined as illegal per se |
Administrative license suspension 1st offense? |
Restore driving privileges during suspension? |
Do penalties include interlock/forfeiture? |
Open container laws |
| South Carolina |
0.08 |
-- |
-- |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| South Dakota |
0.08 |
-- |
-- |
no/no |
driver/passenger |
| Tennessee |
0.08 |
-- |
-- |
yes/yes |
driver |
| Texas |
0.08 |
90 days |
yes |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Utah |
0.08 |
90 days |
no |
yes/no |
driver/passenger |
| Vermont |
0.08 |
90 days |
no |
no/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Virginia |
0.08 |
7 days |
no |
yes/yes |
|
| Washington |
0.08 |
90 days |
after 30 days |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| West Virginia |
0.08 |
6 months |
after 30 days |
yes/no |
-- |
| Wisconsin |
0.08 |
6 months |
yes |
yes/yes |
driver/passenger |
| Wyoming |
0.08 |
90 days |
yes |
no/no |
driver |