SAN ANTONIO -- While San Antonio may be a great place to celebrate, some may be imbibing a little too much.

Five months after San Antonio was named No. 6 on Men's Health magazine's list of the "Drunkest Cities in the Nation," a recent report stated that Bexar County's rate of DWI-related deaths is 11 percent higher than the rest of the country -- which is tops in the nation.

More than 4,000 people were arrested for driving while intoxicated last year, according to county officials.

To combat those numbers, the city of San Antonio, along with the San Antonio Police Department and Metro Health, are working on an initiative that may bring a stark change to enforcement and punishment.

SAPD Chief William McManus presented a plan to the City Council, which would include asking state lawmakers to approve sobriety checkpoints, ignition air-lock devices and penalties based on the amount of intoxication rather than the frequency of an arrest and conviction.

One local legislator said he'd be happy to support some of the proposals.

"Texas, as a state, has some of the toughest drunk driving laws in the nation," Dist. 125 State Rep. Joaquin Castro said. "But there is a lot more we could be doing."

The proposals, which also include a 10-cent per drink tax to go toward alcohol awareness education, are still in the early stages of development, and the Texas Legislature is scheduled to meet next in 2009.