A new state survey suggests the public supports a move from .08 to .05 blood alcohol content.
OLYMPIA, Wash. — Washington state legislators are preparing to revive efforts to lower the legal blood alcohol content threshold for drunk driving from 0.08 to 0.05.
New data, gathered by the Washington Traffic Safety Commission, shows showing growing public support for the stricter standard that sponsors hope will finally secure passage in the 2026 legislative session.
State Senator John Lovick, D-Snohomish County, plans to sponsor the legislation when the session begins in January.
Lovick said legislators who previously voted against the measure have told him they will support it in 2026, marking a potential turning point after similar proposals failed to advance in past sessions.
The push for tougher drunk driving laws comes as impairment plays a role in more than half of Washington’s deadly crashes, which have climbed to rates not seen since the 1990s. If passed, Washington would join Utah as the only U.S. states with a 0.05 BAC threshold, though more than 150 countries already use that standard.
According to newly released research from the state, 54 percent of drivers surveyed initially supported lowering the BAC limit. After learning more about the potential impact, support jumped to 71 percent among drivers 21 and over statewide. The survey also revealed that 20 percent of respondents already thought the state’s BAC level was 0.05.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that reaching a 0.05 BAC level requires three to four drinks for males and two to three drinks for females over a two-hour period on an empty stomach. State and federal research indicates impairment begins at 0.05.
Josh Jackman, a Spokane climbing coach who was severely injured in a 2007 crash involving a drunk driver, supports the stricter threshold.
“It’s not going to change consumption, and it’s not intended to,” Jackman said. “It’s going to change your driving behavior. And you’re like, ‘Oh, .05, huh, not .08? Oh, let’s make a plan before we go out.”
Jackman spent more than two months in a drug-induced coma recovering from broken bones and internal injuries after the crash.
The driver who ran into him died at the scene of the crash.
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