Earlier this month Congress passed the Transportation Appropriations bill, which includes a clause that will require states to either lower the legal blood alcohol count for drunken driving to .08 or lose a percentage of their federal highway funds.

The current BAC in Pennsylvania is .10 for adults and .02 for drivers under the age of 21.

Lowering the BAC will further help causes to limit and prevent drunken driving.

The number of local arrests for drunken driving on campus has gone down every year since 1997, and the number of alcohol-related deaths in Pennsylvania has gone down slightly each year since 1997, according to statistics found at the Mothers Against Drunk Driving web site, www.madd.org.

Despite the fact that problems with drunken driving have been on the decline over the recent years, it is still cause for concern.

A lower BAC level, despite a minimal difference from .10 to .08, will create more awareness among drivers and could help cause people to use more caution when deciding if they are able to drive or not following a period of drinking.

And a greater awareness and concern for limiting the number of drivers on the road that are under the influence of alcohol is always a good thing.

Drivers shouldn't assume they are able to drive even if they don't feel as if they have consumed too much alcohol. It only takes about four drinks in a two-hour time period for a 170-pound man to have a .06 BAC or greater.

Even with a blood alcohol content levels as low as 0.02, alcohol affects driving abilities and increases the very likelihood of getting into an accident. The probability of a car accident begins to increase significantly at 0.05 BAC and climbs rapidly after about 0.08 percent, according to MADD.

Besides lowering the state BAC, officials can also take other measures to limit drunken driving.

If police enforce more strict regulations during big events such as home football games they can also help prevent drunken driving by using greater enforcement at all times — not just the weekends.

Additional sobriety checkpoints could also help hinder underage and drunken driving within the boundaries of State College.