NV: Nevada State Assembly Passes 24-7 Sobriety Program Act
On Monday, the Nevada State Assembly Passed the 24-7 Sobriety and Drug Monitoring Program Act. The bill is modeled after a Safe-And-Sober program used in Washoe County. The bill is for people with less serious DUI’s, not those who face manslaughter or other felonies.
May 20, 2019
On Monday, the Nevada State Assembly Passed the 24-7 Sobriety and Drug Monitoring Program Act.
The bill is modeled after a Safe-And-Sober program used in Washoe County.
The bill is for people with less serious DUI’s, not those who face manslaughter or other felonies.
It would set up a program to monitor if the offender is using drugs or alcohol.
The goal is to help people stay sober and let them get a restricted drivers license for specific reasons.
“If the judge deems that they would be appropriate for the safe and sober program, they can keep a restricted license, they can keep out of the jail, they can hopefully keep their jobs.” says Assemblywoman Jill Tolles.
Under this bill, a court could assign second and third time DUI offenders to a seven-year program. They would not be able to use drugs or alcohol and would be tested at least two times a day and randomly two times a week.
They would also be able to apply for a restricted driver’s license that could only be used to go to work, testing, court dates, counseling and for medical care.
This bill would take the Washoe County “Sober 24” program to a state level. The “Sober 24” program has a 98 percent compliance rate.
Tolles says other states like South Dakota have been doing this for many years with a lot of success.
“They saw that not only did they greatly improve their road safety ratings. Their domestic violence rates went down. So it’s an excellent program, great track record. We want to see that go statewide,” said Tolles.
The Assembly passed the bill 40-1 and it’s Senate committee passed it unanimously. With the second House passage deadline coming this Friday, it’s expected to get a final vote in the coming days.