FCCLA Colorado Campaign for Zero Tolerance for Underage Drugged Driving

FCCLA Colorado Campaign for Zero Tolerance for Underage Drugged Driving

FCCLA Colorado Campaign for Zero Tolerance for Underage Drugged Driving

Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) is partnering with the Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility to support a youth-led effort to create laws that prevent drugged driving. Working together with youth we hope to bring awareness that drugged driving is as dangerous as drunk driving and laws need to be in place to prevent drugged driving.

  • Teens and young adults ages 16-20 have the highest risk of being killed in a traffic crash of any age group. Driver inexperience exacerbates other driving risks such as impairment.
  • The 21 minimum drinking age law, graduated licensing laws and zero tolerance policies for people under 21 who drive with any alcohol in their system have led to a nearly 80% reduction in alcohol-involved traffic fatalities among young drivers since 1982.
  • Today’s youth do not view drug-impaired driving (DUID) in the same way and that is cause for concern and action.
  • Drugged driving has increased dramatically among all age groups in the last eight years.
  • Young drivers are overrepresented among drugged drivers.
  • In a 2012 survey of more than 24,000 high school students, more students reported riding with a driver who had used marijuana (18.0%) compared with alcohol (10.3%). (Schneider et al., 2013)
  • Only 52% of the youth surveyed perceived it was “very dangerous” to ride with a driver who used marijuana. (Schneider et al., 2013)
  • All drug-impaired driving is risky, but the drug most commonly detected in young drivers (both in fatal collisions and at roadside stop) is marijuana.
  • Cannabinoids account for 43% of the drugs detected in fatally injured drivers under the age of 24. (ONDCP, 2011)
  • Drivers age 16-20 had the highest percentage of marijuana positive tests (15.2%) of any age group. (Lacey et al., 2009)
  • One in eight high school seniors admitted to driving under the influence of cannabis in the two weeks prior to the 2013 Monitoring The Future Survey (O’Malley and Johnston).
  • It is illegal to use marijuana under the age of 21. Our proposed legislative language would also make it illegal for people under 21 to drive after using marijuana or illegal drugs. This common sense language is modeled after the Zero Tolerance for alcohol policy that exists in every stateand the District of Columbiafor people under 21 who drive after drinking alcohol. If passed, our legislation would result in equal penalties for people under 21 who drive after drinking alcohol, using marijuana or illegal drugs.
  • Research shows that drugs, like alcohol, impair key driving skills such as coordination and concentration. The result is an inability to perform divided attention tasks, slower reaction time, poor speed maintenance, and steering corrections.
  • If enacted, this legislative language would also address existing misperceptions about drugged driving by improving public awareness and education on this issue.
  • Youth often have misperceptions about the prevalence, acceptability and risk of drugged driving that increase their likelihood of engaging in this behavior. The following misperceptions are documented in scientific literature.
  • Drugged driving is not a serious problem (Heatley, Bruce & Green, 2011; Marcoux, Vanlaar & Robertson, 2011);
  • Drugged driving (particularly driving after consuming cannabis) is safer than alcohol-impaired driving (Patton & Brown, 2002);
  • Some drug use does not adversely affect driving ability (Porath-Waller, Brown, Frigon & Clark, 2013);
  • Some drug use improves driving ability (due to compensation strategies) (Barrie, Jones & Weise, 2011; Dols et al., 2010; Porath-Waller et al., 2013); and,
  • The likelihood of detection and apprehension for drugged driving is low (Jonah, 2013; Patton & Brown, 2002).
  • The same principles and strategies that resulted in massive reductions in youth drunk driving can and should be applied to educate young people about the dangers of drugged driving.
  • Targeted campaigns and prevention initiatives should be undertaken. Communities can provide factual information, engage in constructive dialogue, and mobilize to change youth attitudes and perceptions about DUID. Paramount to the success of these initiatives is the inclusion of peer-to-peer support, engagement of parents, and mobilization of the community-at-large.
  • Other Resources:
  • Governor’s Highway Safety Association report on Drug-Impaired Driving
  • Drugged driving = Done driving campaign
  • ONDCP teen drugged driving toolkit
  • campaign

For more information please contact National FCCLA at

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