National Impaired Driving Prevention Month, 2023

Proclamation 10679 of November 30, 2023

National Impaired Driving Prevention Month, 2023

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

This holiday season, too many American families will
have an empty seat at their table after losing a loved
one in a drunk or drug-impaired driving accident. More
than 10,000 Americans die every year in these
preventable crashes. During National Impaired Driving
Prevention Month, we call on everyone to help save a
life by planning ahead, calling for a ride, only
driving when sober, and helping friends and loved ones
do the same every time.

Nearly a third of deadly car wrecks in America involve
alcohol, and some 26 million people drove under the
influence in 2020, endangering themselves, passengers
and passersby, and the law enforcement officers who
work to keep our roads safe. Just one drink or pill can
destroy a cascade of lives.

The best way to reduce the deadly cost of impaired
driving is prevention, which starts by raising
awareness of its risks and consequences and by working
to treat substance misuse in the first place. The
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has
invested in media campaigns like ``If You Feel
Different, You Drive Different''; ``Drive Sober or Get
Pulled Over''; and ``Drive High, Get a DUI,'' but it is
on all of us to help spread the word, offer to be a
designated driver for others when we can, and call a
ride or ask for help when we need it. Meanwhile, for
Fiscal Year 2024, my Administration asked the Congress
for $26 billion more to fund prevention, treatment, and
recovery support services for substance misuse and $20
billion to reduce the supply of illicit substances
entering our country to help keep communities safe.
Since taking office, my Administration has committed to
provide over $169 billion in drug control funding to
end the overdose crisis.

My Administration is advancing new tools that can help
prevent driving under the influence and improve road
safety. Our Bipartisan Infrastructure Law invests in
technologies that can detect and prevent impaired
driving, and it requires all new passenger cars to
include features like collision warnings and automatic
emergency braking, which can help to avoid accidents.
The Department of Transportation's National Roadway
Safety Strategy works to eliminate traffic deaths and
make crashes less destructive. For example, their Safe
Streets and Roads for All program offers more than $800
million in grants to help cities, counties, Tribes, and
other organizations plan and implement measures improve
the safety of our Nation's roadways.

As we head into the holiday seasons, we urge Americans
everywhere to do the right thing. If you plan on
drinking, arrange a sober ride home in advance; ride-
sharing apps have made getting home safely easier than
ever. If you have used any substance, never get behind
the wheel. If you see someone--a friend, loved one,
colleague, or anyone else--putting themselves or others
at risk, offer to help. It matters. You could save a
life.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of
the United States of America, by virtue of the
authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws
of the United States, do hereby proclaim December 2023
as National Impaired Driving Prevention Month. I urge
all Americans to

make responsible decisions and take appropriate
measures to prevent impaired driving.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
thirtieth day of November, in the year of our Lord two
thousand twenty-three, and of the Independence of the
United States of America the two hundred and forty-
eighth.