"We're making it easier to drink to all hours of the night, but (drinking and driving) didn't come into the discussion," Ratliff-Crain said. "There is a seeming acceptance that this is the way it is. Of course people are going to be drinking and driving, and well, that's it."

Clark said states with the lowest rates for driving under the influence shouldn't take comfort in the data.

"Even in Utah, which reported the nation's lowest rate, nearly one in 10 drivers report driving under the influence of alcohol within the past year," Clark said. "So, even in states that have low consumption rates or low DUI rates, they too need to reflect on the approach they're taking. We don't want people to lull themselves into a false sense of security."

A majority of Utah residents are Mormon. The religion bars the use of alcohol.

It's illegal to drive with a blood alcohol level of 0.08 percent or higher.

In the past decade, the number of impaired drivers involved in alcohol-related crashes has remained relatively stable — from 12,348 in 1996 to 12,491 in 2006.