Moss also pushed the elimination of the so-called Soccer Mom loophole in seat belt laws for children, which essentially says if there are more children than available seat belts, adults aren't in violation of the law.

"I thought it would be a cinch to remove that . . . , but many legislators believe it should not be laws that govern individual decisions for a person's safety."

While federal leadership has worked to achieve more conformity in drunken driving laws, the same can't be said for seat belt laws, according to the American Public Health Association.

More than 40,000 people have been killed in motor vehicle crashes in the United States every year since 1992. More than 3 million more were injured, bringing the total annual cost to society to $230 billion, the group reported.

Dale Hammond, president of Kemper Insurance, said the cost of medical care, legal expenses, property damage and lost productivity from car crashes costs every American $792 a year — "a crash tax." About one-third of that cost is paid by employers.

Locally, a report by the state's Highway Safety Office estimates seat belt usage in Utah's urban counties at 85.2 percent, contrasted with 57.9 percent in rural areas — where seat belt proponents have run into opposition by lawmakers.

"The bottom line for us in the insurance industry is that adoption of the 14 basic highway safety laws is a win-win for everyone," he said. "The laws will save lives, prevent costly injuries, and we, in turn, end up with better cost containment for our customers and increased productivity overall."

In particular, the groups advocate for graduated driver licensing for teens that includes 30 to 50 hours of supervised driving hours, extending the learning period to six months and restricting teen passengers in cars driven by teens and nighttime driving by teens.

Utah has the restrictions for teen passengers, and the state does require an extended learning period. But lawmakers have balked at extending the learning period by six months, and the limitations on nighttime driving do not meet the standards set by Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety.

Utah got high marks for its laws that enhance penalties for DUI if a minor is in the car, for blood-alcohol content laws, sobriety checkpoints, open container laws and sanctions against repeat offenders. The state received top scores for all seven different DUI laws monitored by the group. That issue, too, is due to be revisited by lawmakers in the coming months, with Sen. Carlene Walker, R-Sandy, proposing to levy additional consequences for DUI suspects who refuse to submit to tests determining blood alcohol content.

Because of refusals, law enforcement and prosecutors say some DUI suspects have been able to beat a criminal charge. This measure, however, would impose an automatic provision of "zero tolerance" on drivers who refused the test, even without a criminal conviction.

"People would still be able to drink, able to drive, they just couldn't do both at the same time," Walker said. If they did, under this measure, there would be a criminal charge.

Although it could be modified, right now, the zero tolerance provision would remain in effect 10 years from when a license is revoked, a much longer time frame than a routine criminal conviction carries.

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E-MAIL: spang@desnews.com; amyjoi@desnews.com