AAA Supports Anti-Legalization Efforts in the 2016 Election

When just say “know” becomes “just say NO”: AAA’s position in the 2016 election contradicts its own research.

The American Automobile Association, which has been active in supporting research on marijuana’s effect on driving, has lent its support to NO campaigns in the 2016 election’s legalization votes in Maine and California. Unfortunately, this position contradicts the Association’s own studies and efforts to debunk current laws used to support the measurement of impairment, and its effect on driving.

As marijuana legalization expands across the country, and medical rules are adopted in new states, lawmakers have been grappling with the issue of drugged driving and have fallen back on measurements using blood-THC limits that are faulty and inconclusive. At least 17 states, including Washington, have “per se” laws, which make it illegal to have certain levels of THC in one’s body while operating a vehicle. Under these laws, no additional evidence is required to prove a driver is impaired.

AAA published a full report in May 2016 that took aim at these “per se” limits, and concluded that blood-level tests measuring THC were not scientifically supported. The report suggested roadside impairment tests conducted by officers were far more effective in determining drugged driving.

But the Association’s 2016 election stance in support of NO legalization campaigns does not rely on scientific data: it is based on suggestive factors that may or may not prove any relationship between marijuana-impairment and accidents/fatalities. Their NO campaign states:

• From 2007 to 2014, the number of nighttime weekend drivers in the US with marijuana in their system increased 50%

• In Washington State the percent of drivers in fatal crashes who recently used marijuana more than doubled between 2013 and 2014.

• In 2014, 1 in 6 drivers involved in fatal crashes in the state had recently used marijuana.

• Marijuana was the number one drug in the US found by Drug Recognition Experts in 2014

The statement that someone “recently used” marijuana is not proof that marijuana caused fatal accidents, or that a person was impaired when driving. THC remains in the bloodstream long after the effects of THC have worn off. According to a Pew Trust Report, “while marijuana is the substance, other than alcohol, most frequently found in drivers involved in car accidents, the rate at which it actually causes crashes is unclear.”

Drugged driving is a critical issue that must be dealt with. But AAA’s blanket “NO” to marijuana legalization, without facts supporting the case, is not the answer. In the same way, we don’t need to ban alcohol. Governments and lawmakers need to promote awareness of responsible marijuana usage / sober driving, just as we do with alcohol.