Abstract: The present invention includes a pad driver circuit that has a driver, a power-on circuit coupled to the driver and a power-off circuit coupled to the driver. The power-on circuit is coupled to a pad via the power-off circuit. The power-on circuit provides a high impedance path between the pad and a power supply, particularly when the power supply is off. The power-off circuit provides a stepped-down voltage to the driver when the voltage signal is received. The driver is an open drain driver that includes series pull-down devices. The pad driver further includes a second power off circuit coupled to the driver. The power-on circuit provides a power supply voltage to the driver when a power supply is on. The power-on device preferably includes an inverter coupled to receive a power supply voltage and a clamp coupled to receive an output of the inverter wherein the clamp provides a voltage responsive to the power supply voltage.