From staff reports:

District 30 Sen. Tracey Eide was recently honored by Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), for her continued work at refining Washington’s impaired driving laws, her office announced last week.

Eide’s work with House Bill 2216, which raises the the sentencing range from six and a half years to eight and a half years for first-time offenders convicted of DUI-related vehicular manslaughter, brought Eide the attention from MADD.

“For too long, Washington has had a double standard for drunk drivers,” Eide said. “Kill somebody unintentionally and face about eight years in prison. Kill somebody while driving drunk and the standard sentencing range is significantly lower. That’s simply wrong.”

Over 200 people attended the ceremony, including prosecutors, judges, law enforcement officials and others, according to Eide’s office.

Eide, who serves as the vice-chair for the Senate Transportation Committee, has been working on improving Washington’s driving laws since 1999, when a Federal Way constituent expressed their concerns to her over people driving and talking on cell phones. Since then, she’s worked to hold both distracted and drunk drivers accountable.

HB 2216 was signed into law on March 30, and will take effect on June 7.