ND House endorses tougher state DUI law

North Dakota's House has endorsed a measure that would require jail time for some first-time drunken driving offenders.

The measure passed 80-14 Wednesday and now goes to the North Dakota Senate.

The bill mandates that someone with a blood-alcohol content of 0.21 percent — or nearly three times the legal limit for driving — must be sentenced to 10 days in jail. Some of the sentence could be suspended, meaning that the offender might only spend a day behind bars.

The measure also increases fines and penalties and requires probation for repeat offenders.