What you need to know about a new California bill that could ban weed use while driving
Newly introduced legislation seeks to ban behavior not addressed by Californias new pot law: Toking while driving.
Its currently illegal to have an open container of weed in a vehicle. Its also illegal to drive while high.
But theres a technical loophole in these existing laws, because they dont address actual usage while driving. Nor do they define whether a pipe, joint or edible are considered open containers. Thats akin to saying you cant have an open can of Bud in the car, and you certainly cant be drunk, but its OK to take sips while behind the wheel.
This legislation makes our laws for smoking while driving consistent with drinking while driving, said Senator Jerry Hill, D-San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties, who introduced the bill on Thursday with Assemblyman Evan Low, D-Campbell.
With New Years Eve approaching, its important to remind Californians that impaired driving can be deadly, Hill said in a prepared statement.
The proposed Senate Bill 65 would make it an infraction for anyone to smoke or consume marijuana in any form while driving a vehicle or piloting a boat or plane, consistent with the law on alcohol.
Marijuana and driving are challenging issues for law enforcement. While its clearly dangerous to drive while stoned and perhaps a distraction to smoke a joint or pipe there is not yet a quick, effective and accurate roadside test for determining marijuana impairment.
Earlier this month, Assemblyman Tom Lackey, R-Palmdale, a 28-year-veteran with the California Highway Patrol, introduced a bill intended to give police officers the right to use saliva-based roadside testing devices on drivers they believe are under the influence of marijuana.
Unlike rules about blood alcohol levels, the bill does not prescribe a legal limit. And law enforcement will still be required to prove a driver was impaired based off of field sobriety tests. The saliva test will be used to confirm that a drug is present in the drivers body.
Blood or urine tests cant be conducted on the side of the road. And they arent necessarily a good test of impairment. Thats because drivers become impaired at different levels of THC, marijuanas psychoactive substance, in the blood. Depending on the individual, drivers with relatively high levels of marijuana in their system might not be impaired, while others with low levels may be unsafe behind the wheel.
And THC can be stored in body fat for days or weeks after use, when the user is no longer impaired.
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