The NY State DMV has recently announced tougher regulations for people convicted of multiple alcohol or drug-related offenses.

The regulations allow the DMV to conduct a lifetime review of a driver’s abstract and to deny the driver’s application for reinstatement of a license if the applicant has:

  1. Five or more alcohol or drug related driving convictions in his or her lifetime, or
  1. Three or more alcohol or drug related driving convictions in the last 25 years plus at least one other serious driving offense during that period.

Additionally, for any driver seeking reinstatement of a license after revocation who has three or four alcohol or drug related convictions in the last 25 years the DMV will:

  1. Deny their applications for an additional five years after the revocation period if the applicant’s license was revoked for an alcohol or drug related offense; or two additional years if the applicant’s license was revoked for a reason other than an alcohol or drug related offense;
  2. Restore the applicant’s license after that additional period as a “restricted” license limiting the applicant’s driving to, for example, travel to and from work or medical visits; and
  3. For those drivers whose revocations stem from an alcohol-related offense, require an ignition interlock on the vehicle driven by the applicant for five years.

For more information on this topic: http://www.governor.ny.gov/press/09252012dwiregulations