Tennessee to Keep $60 million in Federal Funding after Changing the Alcohol Limit for Underage Drinkers / Drivers

Source: WGNS

September 14, 2016

It looks like Tennessee will not have a $60 million federal shortfall in highway department funding.

Lawmakers met in Nashville this week and officially repealed a new law that would have changed the drunken driving laws in the Volunteer State for underage drinkers, which meant the feds would have ripped $60 million in funding from the state.

The Federal Government requires a near zero tolerance for underage drinkers who get behind the wheel, but the state changed the law in July of 2016. The change allowed for those under the age of 21 to be held to the maximum allowable blood alcohol content level of 0.08 percent. Previous to July of 2016, the allowable limit was 0.02 percent, which is what it is now back to. If the law would have remained the same, it would have meant a $60 million loss in federal funding for the state.