IOWA
"You Can't Win" Zero Tolerance

PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION

Drivers under the age of 21 are over-represented in motor vehicle crashes, including those involving alcohol. In response to this highway safety problem, Iowa’s General Assembly enacted a Zero Tolerance law that permits Iowa law enforcement officers to apprehend, cite and confiscate the drivers licenses of drivers under 21 years who have a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .02 or greater. There was widespread ignorance about the new law and its penalties, particularly among youth, as documented by several focus groups conducted around the state.

Iowa has continued to spread and promote the Zero Tolerance message through the “Get a Grip Program”. This program trains high school students and counselors on the negative effects of alcohol and the hazards of drinking and driving.

The “You Can’t Win” campaign was designed to educate young drivers about the Zero Tolerance law (which became effective July 1, 1995). The campaign was designed to persuade young drivers to not drink and drive and to increase the perception of risk; thereby, reducing the number and severity of motor vehicle crashes among drivers under age 21 in Iowa. The campaign’s main objectives were to:

• Create widespread awareness among the public, the media and others about the new Zero Tolerance provision of the Drinking While Intoxicated (DWI) law;
• Educate youthful drivers about the new law and its penalty provisions, including the minimum 30-day automatic license revocation; and
• Convey the seriousness of the offense and penalties, but acknowledge that the revocation need not be longer than 30 days if the young traffic offender completes an optional, voluntary drug abuse program.

The “You Can’t Win” campaign included the following strategies and activities:

• Informed high school principals throughout the state about the new law, and enlist their support to educate their students about the law and its various provisions before the end of the 1994-95 school year (May 1995).
• Produced and distributed an educational four-minute video to high schools throughout the state for use in driver education classes before May 1995, and to various drug abuse awareness programs.
• Produced and distributed a 30-second television public service announcement using the “You Can’t Win” theme to dissuade young drivers from drinking and driving.
• Produced and distributed radio public service announcements, newspaper public service ads, and collateral print support materials in hopes of reaching younger drivers outside the secondary schools, as well as to the public and others.

During the first full year of enforcing the state’s Zero Tolerance law (through June 27, 1996), nearly two thousand drivers licenses had been revoked from drivers under 21.