Tribune editorial staff

The next time you are out drinking, you better think twice before you have "just one more."

Under a new law that went into effect this week, that one more may be enough to earn you a trip to jail. As of July 1, it is illegal in Ohio to operate a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.08 percent or higher. The previous legal limit was 0.10. While some may bemoan a DUI law with more teeth in it, it was really best for the state.

When the state's BAC was .10, it was in the vast minority in the nation as 38 other states have maximum BAC's at 0.08.

This change has been coming for several years as the federal government has encouraged states to change the limit.

Even though each state is responsible for determining its own DUI laws, Ohio risked losing federal funding had it not lowered its BAC.

The lost funding, though, is not the only reason the stiffer DUI law was needed. All one has to do is look at state and national statistics to find out that impaired drivers are responsible for many injuries and cost many lives each year.

In Lawrence County, Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers made 31 DUI arrests in the month of June alone. That translates to more than one a day. So far his year, 174 people have been arrested in Lawrence County for driving while impaired.

It is way too early to predict what the stronger DUI law will do in Ohio. Will it result in more DUI arrests due to the lower BAC level, or will it make people think twice before having "just one more?"

Call us optimistic, but we think the end result will be the latter. Yes, more people will likely get arrested initially, but as time goes by, we feel people will heed the warning and turn down that last drink.

While we applaud the stronger DUI law and encourage you to know when to say when, what we really want you to do is, if you are going to drink, make arrangements for a designated driver. And, perhaps, you can return the favor one day by volunteering to be the designated driver yourself.