The Government of Saskatchewan is moving towards the use of administrative penalties for impaired driving as part of its ongoing commitment to strengthen road safety across the province. This approach would give law enforcement additional tools to hold impaired drivers accountable and remove them from Saskatchewan roads quicker.
“Our government continues to strengthen Saskatchewan’s response to impaired driving by making consequences more immediate, certain and effective,” Justice Minister and Attorney General Tim McLeod, K.C. said. “The changes we are moving towards would give police an additional tool to act quickly at the roadside, while preserving their discretion to proceed with Criminal Code charges in serious cases or whenever criminal prosecution is warranted. This approach supports public safety, helps reduce unnecessary pressure on the justice system and allows police, prosecutors and courts to focus resources where they are needed most.”
Potential changes being considered to The Traffic Safety Act would mean drivers who fail a roadside breath test face stronger, more immediate administrative penalties, such as:
- Immediate driver’s licence suspension.
- Immediate vehicle impoundment.
- Immediate requirement for ignition interlock.
- Immediate impaired education courses.
- Immediate safe driver recognition penalties (demerit points and financial).
Impaired drivers would also face new, immediate financial penalties:
- First offence: $1,000 fine, plus a 30 per cent victim surcharge.
- Second and subsequent offence: $2,000 fine, plus a 30 per cent victim surcharge.
“Impaired driving remains one of the leading causes of serious collisions in our province, and Saskatchewan continues to have some of the highest alcohol-impaired driving rates in Canada. That must change,” Legislative Secretary to the Minister Responsible for SGI Travis Keisig said. “We are grateful for the work of the Impaired Driving Advisory Committee and our partners in helping shape this approach, which represents an important step toward reducing impaired driving and protecting people in Saskatchewan.”
Offences resulting in fatalities, injuries, property damage or involving passengers under 16, and drivers who refuse to provide a breath sample, would continue to be dealt with strictly through Criminal Code charges.
Law enforcement and Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) are supportive of the changes being considered, recognizing the role immediate roadside penalties can play in deterring impaired driving.
“Administrative penalties are an effective way to reduce impaired driving,” MADD Canada Chief Executive Officer Steve Sullivan said. “They empower police to remove more impaired drivers from the roads and provide immediate sanctions to hold drivers accountable. We applaud the Saskatchewan Government taking this important step to strengthen impaired driving laws, protect the public and reduce the burden on the justice system.”
This approach would provide police with additional options to remove impaired drivers from the road faster and allow police to spend less time completing paperwork and more time protecting Saskatchewan people on our highways and in our communities.
“The Saskatoon Police Service welcomes the proposed changes to the Traffic Safety Act aimed at stronger consequences and greater education around impaired driving in our province. On top of providing our officers with the increased penalties to utilize, it also offers additional deterrence which would ideally reduce the number of impaired drivers in our city and the number of families affected as a result.”
“The Saskatchewan Association of Chiefs of Police supports administrative penalties for impaired driving. One of the greatest deterrents for law enforcement is not simply the severity of a penalty, but the certainty and immediacy of it,” Saskatchewan Association of Chiefs of Police President Chief Patrick Nogier said. “Administrative penalties allow officers to impose consequences in real-time, rather than months later, while maintaining criminal investigations and prosecutions where circumstances require it. This strengthens the overall response to impaired driving in Saskatchewan and should serve notice to those thinking of drinking and driving.”
