Greg Meyers, candidate for House District 149, announced his support today for legislative initiatives designed to combat drunk driving. In a letter to Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), Meyers said, “I want to be an advocate for your issues in the Texas Legislature and work hard to reduce the senseless deaths that result from this deplorable behavior.”

Meyers said his support of anti-DWI legislation is a clear distinction between the leadership offered by his candidacy and the voting record of Meyer’s opponent, State Rep. Hubert Vo (D – Alief). During the last legislative session, Rep. Vo cast the deciding vote against House Bill 915 in the Law Enforcement Committee of the Texas House of Representatives and defeated a bill that would have strengthened the ability of law enforcement officials to help stop DWI offenders. The bill was supported by the Harris County District Attorney’s office, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the Houston Police Department, and many other law enforcement organizations. Vo also voted against House Bill 489, an anti-DWI measure endorsed by MADD and various law enforcement agencies.

Vo’s opposition to anti-DWI legislation has drawn the ire of MADD volunteers and constituents in his legislative district. Carol Levin is a resident of House District 149 and her son, Todd, was killed by a drunk driver in 2006. Levin turned her family’s grief into action by becoming a volunteer lobbyist for tougher DWI legislation and a grassroots activist for MADD. The Levin family personally met with Vo during the 2007 legislative session. Levin said, “At that meeting, Rep. Vo indicated he would support legislation cracking down on DWI offenses and strengthening law enforcement tools to stop drunk driving. You can imagine our shock and disappointment when we learned that Rep. Vo actually voted against stronger DWI legislation.” (See attached letter from Carol Levin [1])

Harris County has the highest percentage of alcohol-related traffic deaths among the 10 most-populous counties in the nation, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. In 2006, 203 people were killed in alcohol-related traffic crashes in Harris County. Of those, 147 people were killed in drunk driving crashes involving a driver with a blood or breath alcohol concentration of .08 percent or higher. Over the past five years, Harris County has consistently had almost twice as many people killed in alcohol-related crashes than the next county (Dallas) on the list.

Meyers said, “After 4 years in office, Rep. Vo has never authored, co-authored or endorsed any anti-DWI legislation. He made the effort to file bills related to windshield wipers and mini-bikes, but he couldn’t provide leadership and support for the vital public safety issue of DWI enforcement. It’s disingenuous for Vo to claim he is concerned about public safety while doing nothing to curb drunken driving abuses and its inexcusable to vote against bills to help stop DWI deaths.”