WHEREAS, public safety is the highest priority of the U.S. Department of Transportation, Transport Canada, and law enforcement agencies; and

WHEREAS, the best efforts of law enforcement and other government agencies and private organizations have made significant gains in the past in reducing impaired driving; and

WHEREAS, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2005, 16,972 people were killed in crashes involving alcohol, constituting 39 percent of the 43,200 people killed in all traffic crashes and representing a 1.7 percent increase over the previous year; and

WHEREAS, research indicates the effect of drugs, alone or in combination with alcohol, contribute significantly to the number of fatal and injury crashes; and

WHEREAS, law enforcement officers experience firsthand the devastating emotional, mental, and physical effects of impaired driving; and

WHEREAS, research has shown strong and effective laws, combined with highly visible enforcement, not only reduces impaired driving, but also reduces other crimes as well; and

WHEREAS, there are many strategies that can and should be deployed in our fight against impaired driving; and

WHEREAS, the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) encourages allied organizations, both public and private, to work cooperatively with law enforcement to eliminate impaired driving; and

WHEREAS, the IACP encourages all other components of the criminal justice system, including prosecutors and the judiciary, to work cooperatively to eliminate impaired driving; and

WHEREAS, according to NHTSA, sustained high visibility law enforcement is clearly the best strategy for reducing impaired driving; now, therefore be it

RESOLVED that the International Association of Chiefs of Police encourages all law enforcement agencies to engage in a renewed effort against impaired driving, by taking full advantage of known best practices, in particular aggressive high visibility enforcement, to work vigorously toward the elimination of impaired driving; and be it

FURTHER RESOLVED that the IACP supports the use of the IACP Highway Safety Committee’s "Impaired Driving Guidebook: Three Keys to Renewed Focus and Success" as a resource tool in our effort to eliminate impaired driving.