Delaware: Cell phone laws, legislation

Current prohibitions:
Drivers with learner’s permits prohibited from using cell phones.

School bus operators prohibited from using cell phones while driving.

2010 legislation:
HB 298: Would prohibit the use of handheld cell phones by a driver while the vehicle is in motion. Fines $50/$100. In the Public Safety Committee. (Miro)

2009 legislation:
HB 40 Substitute (HS1): Would ban text messaging while driving. Primary enforcement. $50 fine. Tabled by sponsor on May 12, 2009, due to House opposition and problems with wording. Reintroduced as a text-messaging bill, HS1 for HB 40. That bill (without handheld cell phone provisions) was approved by the Delaware House on May 14 and sent to the Senate. Out of Public Safety Committee “on its merits” on June 18. (Miro)

Legislation notes:
The new bill, HS1 for HB 40, calls for a maximum $50 fine and violations will be treated as a primary offense, meaning police can pull over drivers they believe to be text messaging. It also seeks to overrule all local and regional legislation.

The original HB 40 was presented by Rep. Joseph E. Miro, R-Pike Creek Valley. “I am very disappointed we are not passing the entire bill,” Miro told the News Journal. “I will come back with the other half that is missing from this legislation sometime in the future, but for now, this is the best we can do.”

As a cell phone and texting bill, HB 40 had been a magnet for amendments concerning exceptions such as use of ham-radio communications and work-related walkie-talkies.

While still a handheld cell phone ban, HB 40 required only that drivers have a hands-free device in order to drive and use a cell phone. It did not require drivers to use the attachment. It also allowed for the reading of text messages, another problem fixed by amendments.

Wilmington, the largest city in Delaware, has approved a ban on the use of handheld cell phones and text messaging devices while driving. These activities would be considered primary offenses, meaning police could pull over drivers for that reason alone. Fines under the plan, presented by Michael Brown Sr., would run $50. “Whatever Dover does or doesn’t do, we need to take steps here to try to save lives when we can,” Brown said. The ban takes effect Jan. 1, 2009.

Rep. Miro combined two bills that failed in the 2008 session to forge the 2009 legislation HB 40. “I brought this back because it is very close to my heart and I really think we need to address the issue,” Miro said.

Miro’s efforts to limit cell phone use by drivers date back to 2001.

When a Miro bill (HB78) seeking to require hands-free devices for drivers was defeated in May 2007, it brought the following reaction:

“Why do we need this legislation?” said Rep. Dennis P. Williams, D-Wilmington, a retired lawman.

“What about a cup of coffee (being a distraction)? What about a CD player or a radio?”

Delaware State Police report that cell phones were a factor in 252 traffic accidents in 2008.