New legislation may cause Iowa State students to think twice before getting behind the wheel of a car after a few beers.

Iowa may join a growing trend to crack down on drunk driving by modifying its laws for blood-alcohol content limit.

The bill is aimed at pressuring 35 states, including Iowa, to change their zero-tolerance laws from .10 percent blood-alcohol level to .08 percent.

The legislation, supported by U.S. President Bill Clinton and a number of U.S. senators, will affect transportation funding by allowing states three years to set a .08 percent limit.

Beyond the three-year grace period, government authority may withhold 5 percent of state funding essential for highway construction and repair.

Deliberation began in the U.S. Senate on Wednesday. Senator Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, voted against the bill, while Senator Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, was in favor of the bill.

Melissa Carney, press secretary for Grassley, said the senator did not support the proposal because it designated authority to the federal government.

“The reason he voted against it at the national level was because he felt it was a state’s rights issue,” Carney said. “He has confidence in the state legislation for drunk-driving laws.”

Harkin, however, professed that he will stand behind the amendment to secure funds for U.S. highways.

“Maintaining America’s highways is an essential ingredient in a healthy economy. I am a strong supporter and co-sponsor of the … highway bill,” Harkin said in a press release. “The bill logically weighs America’s transportation needs, increasing funding for Iowa and the country.”

A final vote is expected to take place within the next few months, Carney said.

According to a press release, President Clinton urged Congress to pass the legislation at a White House ceremony on March 3.

“Lowering the legal limit to .08 will not prevent adults from enjoying alcoholic beverages.

But lowering the limit will make responsible Americans take even greater care when they drink alcohol in any amounts if they intend to drive,” Clinton said in the press release.

According to figures from the Department of Transportation, one alcoholic beverage is equivalent to 12 ounces of beer, 4 ounces of wine and 1 ounce of 80-proof liquor.

A 1997 study conducted by the DOT found that a 170-pound male would need to consume about four drinks in one hour to reach the .08 limit, while a 130-pound female would reach the limit after three drinks.

Ames Police Chief Dennis Ballantine said although the bill is a good idea, he is skeptical of its effectiveness in curbing drunk driving.

“I guess I see it more as a [public relations], feel-good tool more than anything,” Ballantine said.

“The average BAC (blood alcohol content) is .16, more than twice the .08 level. I’m not sure what good the legislation would do in getting drunks off the street,” he said.

Ballantine said President Clinton referred to studies showing states that already implement the law have lower numbers of alcohol-related driving deaths.

“[Clinton said] it would reduce [deaths] by ‘x’ number,” he said. “I haven’t seen the studies; I would really like to see that.”

Ballantine added that the proposal is not a new idea.

“Governor Branstad has been recommending it for the last two to four years, and it has never passed,” he said.

ISU students have expressed differing opinions about the bill.

Mark Brim, senior in agricultural studies, said the potential law is a hassle for drinkers.

“You go to the bar, you get drunk; what do you do? It’s illegal to walk home, and it’s illegal to drive home,” he said.

Brim added that revising the already strict tolerance limit will not evoke a change in driving habits.

“The difference between .10 and .08 is barely one beer; it’s not that big of a deal,” he said. “I know a lot of people who have been busted for OWI (operating while intoxicated) at way over .08.”

But according to the Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) in New York, nearly one-quarter of drunk-driving fatalities involve drivers with blood-alcohol content levels under .10.

OASAS also cited studies showing that individuals with a level of .08 are six to 10 times more likely to be involved in an alcohol-related accident than at a zero level.

Christine Rice, junior in psychology, has been the victim of an intoxicated driver, and she said altering the law is a step in the right direction.

“I think [the limit] should be changed,” Rice said. “I got in a really bad accident by a drunk driver, so I don’t like it.”

Although the modification may not have dramatic consequences, she said “it’s a start.”