Alaska texting law gets a rewrite

A pair of state representatives have submitted to the Legislature a new version of Alaska’s text messaging law to ensure its intent is clear to the courts.

Reps. Les Gara and Bill Thomas on Jan. 6 filed the bipartisan legislation House Bill 255, which would remove any doubt that texting and driving is illegal in Alaska.

The ambiguous wording of Alaska’s 2008 prohibition on texting & driving came back to haunt legislators when a magistrate in tiny Kenai ruled that the state needed to be more precise with the distracted driving law. The magistrate noted correctly that its wording never actually refers to “text messaging.”

Instead, Alaska Statute Section 28.35.161 created “the crime of driving with a screen device operating” under which cell phone users are exempt for purposes of “verbal communication.”

Magistrate Jennifer Wells dismissed a texting & driving case in December 2011, saying: “If the Alaska legislature wanted to prohibit texting, then it should have, and could have, clearly said so.” The state of Alaska is appealing Wells’ decision.

Magistrates in Fairbanks received instructions from a supervising judge not to enforce the law as well.

Rep. Gara, D-Anchorage, said Jan. 4: “Rather than wait for appeals, we want to send a clear message to the public, now, that texting, and typing on personal and computer devices can cause death and serious injury. The current uncertainty in the law sends a weak safety message to the public.”

Separately, Gara told the Alaska Dispatch: “We think the current law is OK, we agree with the judges that have been enforcing it. There’s a good faith disagreement among the judges (that would be resolved by clear wording).”

Several legislators from both parties will be signing on sponsors, said Gara and Thomas, R-Haines. Rep. Max Gruenberg, D-Anchorage, and at least one other House Republican will be prime sponsors, they said.

Several distracted driving bills are pending in the Alaska 2011-2012 legislative session, but they’re given little chance of succeeding. The Gara-Thomas legislation is deliberately distanced from those bills — some include cell phone provisions — to ensure quick passage, the sponsors said.

(originally posted Jan. 5 and updated with the bill filing Jan. 6)

View the Alaska distracted driving news page.

Distracted driving year in review

The debate over distracted driving burned hotter than ever as 2011 ended, thanks to a controversial call for a total ban of cell phone use while behind the wheel.

The year saw significant progress in the legislative war on against distracted driving.

While some state laws prohibiting use of handheld cell phones took effect, most of the success came with bans of text messaging while driving.

Here’s a recap of the big distracted driving stories of 2011:

New year, new laws (Jan. 1-2): Three states — Delaware, Kentucky and Kansas — see their new distracted driving laws take full effect as 2011 arrives.

Remembering Heather (Jan. 5): A stretch of Florida’s U.S. 27 is named in the memory of texting & driving driving victim Heather Hurd. State lawmakers then spend the rest of the year ignoring “Heather’s Law” and related distracted driving legislation. The Department of Transportation features Hurd and other victims in a its new Faces of Distracted Driving series.

Multimedia cars on parade (Jan. 8): The big Consumer Electronics Show confirms that automakers are quickening the pace toward making vehicles hubs of electronic information and entertainment. Toyota and Hyundai unveiled new wireless communications and data systems. Ford rolled out an electric car, with “wireless-connected vehicle services.” GM’s OnStar plugged its app that reads text messages and checks for Facebook updates.

N.Y. makes 2 points (Feb. 11): New York’s DMV assesses 2 points against the driver’s license of handheld cell phone violators. The points already were being charged against text messaging drivers. The governor thinks that’s still not enough of a deterrent and takes action in the summer.

April’s the month: Distracted Driving Awareness Month debuts with the support of safety advocates, law enforcement agencies and the U.S. DOT. Former U.S. Rep. Betsy Markey helped make the designation official last year.

Distracted summit sequel (April 21): “I can’t think of another safety issue in American history that’s gained so much traction in such a short period of time,” Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood tells the Illinois Distracted Driving Summit. LaHood, left, cites “tremendous grassroots groundswell against distracted driving.”

No. 31, North Dakota (April 26): Gov. Jack Dalrymple approves legislation that bans all texting while driving. He also OKs a ban on electronic communications device use by teen drivers. North Dakota became the 31st state to ban text messaging while behind the wheel.

No. 32, Indiana (May 11): Gov. Mitch Daniels enacts a law banning text messaging while driving, with fines up to $500. The new law essentially expands the state statute against teen texting to all drivers, with primary enforcement. Indiana became the 32nd state to outlaw texting & driving.

Ticket swarm in Golden State (April): In California, what is called the nation’s largest campaign against distracted driving results in more than 53,000 citations during April. The “zero tolerance” sweep involves 103 CHP offices, and more than 280 local and regional law enforcement agencies.

No. 33, Maine (June 3): Gov. Paul LePage OKs safety legislation that specifically bans texting while driving as a primary offense. A general distracted driving law went into effect in 2009, but its author Sen. Bill Diamond returned with the new texting measure that “deals better with the cause of the problem.” Maine became the 33rd state to ban texting while driving.

“Intrusion” in Texas (June 17): Gov. Rick Perry vetoes safety legislation that would have banned texting while driving in Texas. He calls House Bill 242 an “intrusion” and a “government effort to micromanage the behavior of adults.” A month later, the Republican announces he’s running for president.

No. 34, Nevada: Gov. Brian Sandoval signs off on legislation banning handheld cell phone use and text messaging for all drivers. Fines are $50 then $100 and then $250. Maine became the 34th state to ban texting & driving.

N.Y. gets tougher (July 12): Gov. Andrew Cuomo signs into law a plan to make texting while driving a primary offense. He immediately follows up the action by ordering the DMV to assess a third point against the drivers licenses of texting and handheld cell phone violators. Use of handheld cell phones already carried primary status in New York.

Smith exits (July 13): Jennifer Smith, the high-profile president of FocusDriven, steps down from her post at the the distracted driving victims advocacy group. She’s no longer listed as a board member.

Brown-out (Sept. 6): California Gov. Jerry Brown vetoes a plan to double fines for distracted driving violations, saying he was not interested in overburdening “people of ordinary means.” Senate Bill 28 also would have applied the ban on hands-free electronic device use to bicyclists. State Sen. Joe Simitian says the veto of his bill results in “a lost opportunity to save more lives.”

No. 35, Pennsylvania (Nov. 9): Gov. Tom Corbett signs off on legislation that bans texting while behind the wheel. The original Senate bill called for a ban on handheld cell phone use as well, but the provision was removed by House Republican leaders. Pennsylvania became the 35th state to outlaw texting while behind the wheel. The law takes effect in March 2012. Enforcement is primary, with $50 fines.

Two-handed truckers (Nov. 23): Interstate truck drivers who use handheld cell phones face fines of up to $2,750 under a final rule issued by the DOT. After two violations of the rule, drivers would lose their licenses at the state level. The handheld device ban also applies to bus drivers. The ban affects about 4 million commercial drivers.

“Distraction-affected crashes” (Dec. 8): The NHTSA changes its way of tracking distracted driving accidents, resulting in a significantly lower number of deaths reported for 2010. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration dubs the revamped category “distraction-affected crashes,” with the focus on cell phone use and text messaging. The result: 3,092 people died in distracted driving incidents, down significantly from 2009′s 5,474 fatalities. The DOT says the lower number doesn’t indicate progress: “All of our evidence suggests that the problem may actually be getting worse.”

NTSB seeks total ban (Dec. 13-21): Saying, “It is time for all of us to stand up for safety by turning off electronic devices when driving,” the National Transportation Safety Board calls for a nationwide ban on drivers’ use of portable handheld electronic devices. A week later, DOT chief Ray LaHood publicly distances himself from the NTSB plan, saying, “The problem is not hands-free (use of electronic devices).” The year ends with massive media coverage of the issue.

Read the full stories in Hands Free Info’s Distracted Driving News section.

Copyright 2011 Glenn Abel.

N.Y. texting law no turkey

Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s state police feasted on text-messaging violations over the Thanksgiving holiday, handing out 816 tickets.

“The more than 800 tickets issued in just five days further demonstrates the need for these stricter laws which focus on drivers who put others at risk by illegally using a hand-held device,” the New York governor said after the ticket tally.

The statewide distracted driving sweep “Operation Hang-Up” ran Nov. 23-27. State Police said about 330 of the texting tickets came as a result of that crackdown. The other ticketing came via regular enforcement of the state’s texting and cell phone use laws, which yields about 1,000 tickets a month.

Cuomo targeted distracted driving last summer (pictured), signing off on the Legislature’s plan to make texting (and use of various handheld electronic devices) while driving a primary offense. Cell phone use already was subject to primary enforcement in New York.

At the same time, Cuomo ordered the DMV to assess a third point against the drivers licenses of texting and cell phone violators.

The statewide number of texting-while-driving tickets increased from an average of 429 per month to 1,000 in the wake of primary enforcement.

The Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee funded Operation Hang-Up via a grant from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Several state traffic officials said the New York distracted driving sweeps would continue thanks to the federal grant.

“Using a hand-held device while operating a motor vehicle is illegal, and through future enforcement campaigns we will continue to make sure our roadways are safe for all New Yorkers,” said Barbara Fiala, commissioner of the DMV.

The New York holiday ticket sweep was announced Nov. 17.

Pennsylvania texting law breakdown

Specifics of the ban on text messaging that was approved by Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett on Nov. 9, 2011:

• Prohibits as a primary offense all drivers from using an Interactive Wireless Communication Device (IWCD) to send, read or write a text-based message.
• Defines an IWCD as a wireless phone, personal digital assistant, smart phone, portable or mobile computer or similar devices that can be used for texting, instant messaging, emailing or browsing the Internet.
• Defines a text-based message as a text message, instant message, email or other written communication composed or received on an IWCD.
• Institutes a $50 fine for convictions under this section.
• Makes clear that this law supersedes and preempts any local ordinances
  restricting the use of interactive wireless devices by drivers.

The law takes effect in early March 2012.

Source: Pennsylvania Office of the Governor

3 new distracted driving laws

Motorists in Nevada, Maine and Maryland are now subject to new distracted driving regulations.

Nevada’s ban on text messaging and using handheld cell phones will driving officially went into effect Saturday, Oct. 1. Violators won’t be punished for the next three months, though, as law officers are only issuing warnings until Jan. 1. Then it’s on to fines that start at $50 and go to $250.

In Maryland, legislators have completed their clean-up of the existing texting while driving law. As of Oct. 1, “reading” of text messages is illegal while driving in Maine. Previously, only the writing and sending of text messages (and email) were illegal. Also, the earlier state law allowed for texting at red lights, but that loophole too has been closed. Fines run between $40 and $100.

And Maine’s new law against texting while driving went into effect Sept. 28. At least, the reading and writing of text messages (and email). The sending of messages, curiously, remains legal. Tickets are now being written and fines start at a minimum $100.

Nevada became the 34th state to ban texting while driving.

Read more:

• Nevada’s new distracted driving laws
• Maryland’s changes to its texting ban
• Maine’s text messaging laws

SB 28 vetoed in California

California’s governor has vetoed a plan to double fines for distracted driving violations, saying he was not interested in “ratcheting up the penalties as prescribed by this bill.”

The legislation was Senate Bill 28, approved by the state House and Senate, and sent to Gov. Jerry Brown on Aug. 15.

The bill’s author, Sen. Joe Simitian, said the veto resulted in “a lost opportunity to save more lives.”

Brown wrote in his veto message: “For people of ordinary means, current fines and penalty assessments should be sufficient deterrent.”

Under the Simitian plan, fines for using handheld cell phones or text messaging while driving would have increased to $50 (first offense) and $100.

In addition, a point would have been charged against the driver’s license on second and subsequent offenses. A first offense would have cost violators about $310 after court costs. Repeat offenses would have hit $528, plus the point.

The distracted driving law revisions also would have extended prohibitions against hands-free electronic device use to bicyclists.

Simitian, D-Palo Alto, said he would “review the governor’s veto message to see if there is any room for compromise in the coming year (2012).” No wiggle room was apparent in Brown’s short rejection of SB 28.

Simitian’s SB 28 was a reprise of his 2010 plan to more than double fines for distracted driving violations. That plan failed to cleared the Legislature, and the senator rewrote the legislation. The points provision also was watered down during SB 28′s journey through the 2011 Legislature in order to make it more palatable to lawmakers.

“I’m disappointed,” Simitian said in a post-veto press release, “but the governor gets the last word. I understand and accept that. My job now is to figure out where do we go from here.”

Simitian has been the point person on California’s distracted driving laws, among the earliest and most comprehensive in the nation.

Of his attempts to toughen the laws, Simitian said: “While the numbers show that compliance is good and that California’s hands-free law is working, we can do better and save even more lives,” said Simitian, following the bill’s passage.

Brown said: “I certainly support discouraging cell phone use while driving a car, but not ratcheting up the penalties as prescribed by this bill.”

• View the California distracted driving law page.
• View the governor’s veto message.
• View Sen. Simitian’s press release following SB 28 veto.
• Read the SB 28 passage press release.

Calif. gov gets bill doubling fines

The state Senate and House have approved Sen. Joe Simitian’s SB 28, a reprise of his 2010 plan to more than double fines for distracted driving violations. The 2011 bill was sent to Gov. Jerry Brown on Aug. 15.

Update of Sept. 7: The governor vetoed SB 28, saying its fines were too punitive for most people.

Under the Simitian plan, fines for using handheld cell phones or text messaging while driving would have increased to $50 (first offense) and $100.

In addition, a point is charged against the driver’s license on second and subsequent offenses. A first offense would cost violators about $310 after court costs. Repeat offenses will hit $528, plus the point.

“While the numbers show that compliance is good and that California’s hands-free law is working, we can do better and save even more lives,” said Simitian, following the bill’s passage.

The bill now applies to bicyclists. After lobbying from bicyclists groups, the penalties in the Simitian plan were set at $20 for a first offense and $50 thereafter, with no added fees — and no point on their driver’s license.

Read the SB 28 press release

In N.Y., texting a primary offense

New York means business with violators of its texting and driving law: The governor signed legislation giving primary enforcement status to the offense.

That means law officers can stop and cite offenders of the state’s electronic distracted driving laws. Handheld cell phone use already carries primary enforcement status in New York.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo also said he would order the DMV to carry out his plan to assess a third point against the drivers licenses of texting and handheld cell phone violators.

“It’s plain and simple: Distracted driving leads to tragedies that have affected families all across New York,” Cuomo said while signing the bill in Manhattan on July 12. “This new law will help ensure that drivers keep their eyes on the road and their hands on the wheel.”

The Assembly and Senate on June 14 approved the texting plan, sponsored by Sen. Carl Marcellino, R-Long Island, and Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg, D-Nassau County. The law resulting from bills S5643 and A8106 did not increase penalties for violators — just increased the chances of their being pulled over and cited. The fine for violations remains at $150.

The governor’s plan for the third point did not clear the legislative, so he’s doing it administratively, via state regulations. New Yorkers who text and drive became subject to 2-point penalties earlier this year. That rule change brought handheld cell phone violations in line with penalties under the state’s newer (2009) text messaging law.

Marcellino said at the texting-bill signing, “With this new legislation, New York State driving laws have finally caught up with today’s technology.”

Weisenberg added, “As a former police officer, I’ve seen the devastation caused by distracted drivers. Today, we are giving law enforcement the tools they need to keep our roads safe and prevent future accidents.

Read the New York distracted driving news page

Nevada nixes texting, driving

Nevada’s governor has approved legislation banning handheld cell phone use and text messaging for all drivers. The Assembly’s final vote came May 30 and the Senate signed off June 4.

Nevada is now the 34th state to ban texting while driving.

The measure, SB 140, has was approved by Gov. Brian Sandoval, who made it clear that he would support a statewide ban on text messaging while driving. The law will go into full effect Jan. 1 with warnings to be handed out in October. Fines are $50 then $100 and then $250.

Sen. Shirley Breeden was the bill’s author. Her texting bill of 2010 failed to get out of committee, but, undaunted, she added handheld cell phones to 2011 plan. “We’re going to go for the whole enchilada,” she said as the legislative year began.

DOT chief Ray LaHood issued the customary praise press release: “I commend Gov. Sandoval for signing legislation that will help save lives and put a stop to dangerous distracted driving behavior on Nevada roads.

“In a split second, the consequences of texting behind the wheel can be devastating. There’s no call or text so important that it can’t wait.”

Cuomo seeks tougher penalties

Saying that “current warnings, educational programs and driving laws aren’t working,” Gov. Andrew Cuomo has proposed legislation that would crack down on drivers using a variety of portable electronics.

The governor’s plan would make drivers’ use of any portable electronic device subject to primary enforcement, meaning police would not need another reason to stop and cite them. Handheld cell phone violations already are marked for primary enforcement in New York.

Cuomo’s plan also threatens repeat violators with loss of their driving privileges: The governor calls for an additional point against offenders’ licenses, making the demerits for texting or talking on handheld cell phones total three.

(Update: Gov. Cuomo said he would add the third point at an administrative level, after that plan failed in the legislature. He also signed legislation July 12 making texting a primary offense.)

“We need to impose a true deterrent to stop people from driving while using an electronic device and to keep our roads and citizens safe,” Cuomo said June 10.

Handheld cell phone violators in New York just began receiving two points in February, an action taken to make the penalty consistent with existing text messaging laws.

“Distracted driving is nothing less than a lethal activity for the driver themselves, other drivers on the road, and pedestrians,” Cuomo said.

The New York Senate already approved a plan giving primary enforcement status to the offense of text messaging while driving. The measure was sent to the Assembly on May 3 and is expected to pass in the coming days.

The governor’s plan is broader, covering numerous electronics devices, such as tablet computers and smartphones.

That bill’s sponsor, state Sen. Carl Marcellino, R-Long Island, told the New York Times he was concerned about the number of electronic devices outlawed under the governor’s plan: “I think we have to be careful because it’s a very expansive bill.”

The legislation would mandates that distracted driving be included in New York’s defensive driving courses and materials.

DOT chief Ray LaHood checked in after news of the Cuomo plan broke: “I commend Gov. Cuomo for introducing strong legislation that will help save lives and put a stop to dangerous distracted driving behavior on New York roads.”

Read more about New York’s distracted driving laws.

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