DRIVE to HALT Drunk Driving Act
- Bill Number
- H.R. 6850
- Origin Chamber
- House
- Congress
- 119th Congress, Session 1
- Policy Area
- Transportation and Public Works
- Status
- Introduced
- Latest Action
- 2025-12-18: Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
- Last Updated
- 2026-06-11T16:56:27Z
AI-Generated Summary
Purpose
The legislation aims to reduce drunk and impaired driving by mandating that large motor vehicle manufacturers produce and sell a minimum number of passenger vehicles equipped with advanced technologies to detect and prevent such impairments. It promotes the adoption of proven safety systems to enhance road safety.
Key Provisions
- Mandate for Covered Manufacturers: Starting 180 days after enactment, manufacturers that produced, sold, or imported more than 250,000 motor vehicles in the second most recent calendar year (termed "covered manufacturers") must annually manufacture, sell, offer for sale, introduce into interstate commerce, or import at least:
- 10,000 passenger motor vehicles (defined as non-commercial vehicles) meeting the performance specifications of the DADSS Subsystem Performance Specification Document (a standard for detecting alcohol impairment in drivers).
- 10,000 passenger motor vehicles complying with sections 3.5.1 through 3.5.4.4 of the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) version 10.3 (published December 2023), which addresses distracted driving prevention technologies like driver monitoring systems.
- Updates to Standards: The Euro NCAP standard automatically updates to any revisions or new versions within 120 days, unless the Secretary of Transportation (via the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA) determines after public notice and comment that it fails to meet U.S. motor vehicle safety needs—in which case the original standard remains in effect.
- Sunset Clause: The requirements end upon the effective date of a broader rulemaking mandated by section 24220 of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (which requires advanced impaired driving prevention technology in all new vehicles).
- Enforcement: Violations are subject to civil penalties under existing law (up to $25,000 per violation, adjusted for inflation).
- Definitions and Amendments: Expands the legal definition of a "motor vehicle safety standard" to include these production requirements, ensuring they are treated as federal safety mandates.
Significant Changes to Existing Law
- Adds a new section (30130) to Chapter 301 of Title 49, United States Code, which governs motor vehicle safety standards, marking the first explicit federal requirement for minimum production volumes of vehicles with specific impairment prevention technologies.
- Updates the table of contents for the relevant chapter and amends section 30165 to include penalties for non-compliance with the new mandate.
- Broadens the statutory definition of "motor vehicle safety standard" in section 30102 to encompass not just performance minimums but also production quotas for safety-equipped vehicles, shifting from purely design-based standards to include manufacturing obligations.
Potential Impacts
- On Government Agencies: NHTSA will gain oversight responsibilities for reviewing and potentially rejecting updated international standards, increasing administrative workload but aligning with its role in vehicle safety regulation. No direct impacts on international relations, though it references and incorporates a European standard, fostering global harmonization of safety tech.
- On Citizens: Could lead to wider availability of safer vehicles, potentially reducing drunk and impaired driving incidents (which cause thousands of deaths annually in the U.S.), benefiting drivers, passengers, and pedestrians through advanced detection systems that alert or prevent operation if impairment is detected.
- On Manufacturers and Industry: Large automakers (e.g., those like Ford, Toyota, or GM producing over 250,000 vehicles yearly) face compliance costs for integrating and producing these technologies, but the minimum threshold (10,000 units each) applies only to them, sparing smaller manufacturers. This may accelerate innovation in impairment prevention but could raise vehicle prices short-term.
Main Stakeholders Affected
- Auto Manufacturers: Primarily large ("covered") ones required to meet production quotas; smaller firms are exempt.
- Government Entities: NHTSA and the Department of Transportation, responsible for enforcement, standard reviews, and public consultations.
- Consumers and Road Users: Drivers and the public, who gain access to vehicles with built-in safety features to curb impaired driving.
- Safety Advocates and Victims' Families: Groups pushing for anti-drunk driving measures, honored here through the bill's naming after the Abbas family (victims of a drunk driving incident).
Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications
- Legal: Strengthens federal authority over vehicle manufacturing under the Motor Vehicle Safety Act by treating production mandates as enforceable safety standards, with clear civil penalty mechanisms. The sunset clause ensures this is a temporary bridge to broader regulations, avoiding permanent micromanagement.
- Constitutional: Relies on Congress's commerce clause powers to regulate interstate vehicle sales and imports, which courts have upheld for safety standards; no apparent free speech or privacy issues, as technologies focus on driver impairment detection without mandating data collection.
- Political: Positions as a targeted, technology-driven approach to a public health issue (impaired driving), with bipartisan potential given its focus on saving lives rather than punishment. May spark debate over federal mandates on industry versus state-level enforcement, but the bill's narrow scope (minimum production, not all vehicles) limits controversy.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.
Sponsor
Recent Actions
- 2025-12-18: Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
- 2025-12-18: Introduced in House
- 2025-12-18: Introduced in House
Bill Versions
- Deployment of Required Impairment Prevention Vehicle Equipment to Honor the Abbas Family Legacy to Terminate Drunk Driving Act of 2025 — issued 2025-12-18 — PDF (5 pages)