California lawmakers announced a slate of bills Thursday that advocates say is the largest push to strengthen drunk driving laws in over two decades.

The proposals include AB 1605, a bill by Assemblymember Rhodesia Ransom, D-Tracy, which would give judges the discretion to add a “no alcohol sale” designation to the IDs of people who have multiple DUIs, or have been involved in a case that includes great bodily injury, major property damage or death.

“This bill addresses the root cause of the problem, access for alcohol, for individuals who have demonstrated that they are not responsible,” Ransom said Thursday. Ransom pointed to data from the California Office of Traffic Safety that show nearly 1,400 people were killed in alcohol-involved crashes in California in 2023. The bill follows one that went into effect this January in Utah.

Ransom spoke about the bill during an emotional news conference that featured several stories from California families who lost family members including Kellie Montalvo, whose son Benjamin was killed in 2020 in Corona, by an impaired driver who had been at fault in four other crashes. The driver is set to be released on Saturday, after serving less than one-third of her sentence.

Democrats, who’ve largely advocated for shorter sentences and more leniency for people in the justice system, say the state has been too lenient on reckless drivers.

“I think California has done a lot to try to be on the compassionate side of the justice system, but I think in this moment, we have tragically failed,” said Assemblymember Dawn Addis, D-Morro Bay.

There’s bipartisan support for stiffer DUI laws

State Republicans were full-throated in their agreement. “I’ve waited 12 years for this, and the country’s waited even longer. It’s time,” said Assemblymember Tom Lackey, R-Palmdale.

Of the nine bills introduced Thursday, four would increase criminal penalties for people convicted of DUIs, including an omnibus bill by state Sen. Bob Archuleta, D-Pico Rivera, which aims to conduct “comprehensive reform” of DUI and reckless-driving laws.

SB 907 would add DUIs to the violent felony list, allow consecutive sentencing for multiple violations, add a three-year sentence enhancement for someone who had a prior felony DUI, increase punishment for hit-and-run perpetrators if they have a prior DUI conviction, and increase possibilities for someone who kills a person while driving intoxicated to be charged with second-degree murder if they were previously charged with a DUI.

Archuleta’s 30 year-old granddaughter, Samantha, was killed by a drunk driver in December 2024.

“This is not a partisan issue. It’s a family issue. This is about our values as a state, showing California that their government takes our drunk-driving epidemic seriously,” he said.

Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris, D-Irvine, is attempting for the third time to pass a bill that would require all first-time offenders convicted of driving under the influence to install an ignition interlock device, or breathalyzer, on their vehicles.

“We know that these devices save lives. We know that these devices work. We know that in the 35 states across America who have implemented similar requirements, these devices have caused fatalities and accidents because of DUIs to go down.“

Petrie-Norris’ efforts to get the legislation passed in 2023, and 2025 failed. She attributed last year’s failure to pushback from the Department of Motor Vehicles and Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration over not having the money to upgrade relevant computer systems. She said the groups had engaged in productive conversations over the fall.

“I’m very committed to ensuring that we get this bill across the finish line.”

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