Louisiana: Cell phone laws, legislation

Cell phone, texting news: Louisiana traffic accident figures for 2011 show that electronic distracted driving played a role in 2,788 crashes, five of which resulted in fatalities.

Louisiana lawmakers have rejected all distracted driving legislation concerning cell phones four years in a row. The state did upgrade its existing text messaging ban to primary enforcement during 2011. This means police can stop and cite drivers for that violation alone.

The Legislature returns March 12. No distracted driving legislation had been prefiled as of early February.

Current prohibitions:

• Text messaging banned for all drivers. Fines up to $175 (first offense) and then $500. Primary enforcement.
• Drivers under 18 years old may not use wireless devices — including cell phones, text-messaging units and computers — while operating motor vehicles.
• Drivers with learner’s and intermediate licenses prohibited from using cell phones unless a hands-free device is attached.

Distracted driving notes (2012):
Louisiana State Police Troop L reported four fatalities in a trio of crashes linked to driver distraction in a period of four days in January.

Cell phone use was linked to 2,226 crashes in Louisiana in 2011. Other electronic devices (such as GPS) contributed to another 562. Five of those crashes resulted in fatalities, state figures show.

2011 distracted driving legislation (dead):
Louisiana House Bill 337: Requires drivers using cell phones or other electronic communications devices to employ a hands-free device and apply a “high degree of caution.” Secondary enforcement. Fines: $100 (first offense) then $150 (second)/$200/$250. Rejected by the House Transportation Committee in a 5-8 vote taken May 17. (Badon)

HB 338: Would prohibit operators of motor vehicles from using handheld wireless telecommunication devices such as cell phones. Includes PCs. Primary offense. Fine: $125 plus costs. Rejected by the House in a 55-33 vote taken June 10. Dead. (Stiaes)

HB 387: Would strike and replace state law against having a video screen in a vehicle unless it’s located behind the driver’s seat. Bill’s intent is to to authorize use of split-view screens in which passengers can view entertainment such as TV broadcasts, but the driver cannot. The new law would prohibit use of any TV/video screen that can be seen by driver while vehicle is in motion. Installers not allowed to install entertainment screens that are visible to driver. (Burrell)

* Louisiana’s legislative site does not accommodate direct access to bill status, history, etc. To determine status of cell phone and texting legislation, use the general search page.

2011 distracted driving notes:
In 2011, the House shot down HB 338, which would have prohibited all drivers in Louisiana from using handheld cell phones while driving. It called for primary enforcement. The June 10, 2011, roll call vote was 55-33 against enactment of the plan from Rep. Charmaine Marchand Stiaes, D-New Orleans.

A similar measure, HB 337, was rejected by the House Transportation Committee on May 17, 2011. It called for secondary enforcement of its proposed ban on handheld cell phones.

The News-Star puzzled over the Legislature’s unwillingness to adopt a handheld cell phone law for drivers, noting on June 11 that the state “already has outlawed texting while driving, so lawmakers obviously recognize a danger exists with distracted drivers.” The Monroe newspaper’s editorial board went on to remind voters that lawmakers “cited their own (phoning and driving) practices as their excuse for defeating the legislation. One lawmaker even tried to exempt legislators from the proposed law.”

HB 387 seeks to allow the use of split-screen in-dash monitors, found in a few vehicles such as those in the Mercedes S-Class (SplitView). These dashboard screens allow front passengers to watch movies or television while the driver sees only navigational elements. The federal Department of Transportation has yet to take a stand on the new wave of vehicle entertainment systems such as those that access the Internet.

2010 legislation:
Louisiana Senate Bill 9: Upgrades the existing law prohibiting text messaging to primary enforcement status, meaning law officers can stop and cite violators solely for that offense. Also applies to ban on use of wireless telecommunications devices by youngest drivers. Fines would remain at $175 (first offense) and then up to $500. Insurance company notification of offenses. (Louisiana Act 203)

SB 9 was advanced to the full Senate by the transportation committee on April 15 and approved by the Senate on April 21 in a 22-9 vote. Approved by the House (with minor changes) in a 69-22 vote on June 2. Back to the Senate for final sign-off, which came June 7 in a 32-0 vote. Latest action: Signed into law by Gov. Bobby Jindal on June 17; goes into effect Sunday, Aug. 15. (Gautreaux)

House Bill 863: Prohibits texting and handheld cell phone use for all drivers. Does not include hands-free operation of mobile phones and use of two-way radios. Primary offense. Fine of $125 plus court costs. Originally a separate distracted driving law for commercial vehicle operators, but amended to include all drivers with sponsors’ backing. Approved by the House Transportation Committee on April 27 (a 12-2 vote) and sent to the full House. Failed to advance in the House after two votes. Dead as of May 17. (Stiaes, Leger)

HB 1235: Would outlaw use of handheld cell phones and other electronic communications devices for all drivers. Primary enforcement. Fines $100 (first offense)/$150/$200/$250. Approved by the House Transportation Committee on April 27 (a 12-2 vote) and sent to the full House. (Bandon)

HB 134: Would establish that in liability cases, drivers using handheld electronic devices would be assumed to be at fault for any accident — “prima facie.” No activity since late March. (Abramson)

2010 legislation notes:
HB 863 started life as a ban on handheld cell phone use by commercial truck drivers, but it was amended in committee to apply to all drivers. State Rep. Jack Montoucet, D-Crowley, wrote the amendment: “It is getting worse and worse day by day,” he said of drivers using cell phones.

The Louisiana Highway Safety Commission reports that cell phone-related fatalities were up to 16 in 2009, and probably underreported. In 2005, the number was six. A 2009 attitudinal survey of Louisiana drivers conducted for the commission and the Department of Transportation found 81.9 percent of respondents considered it dangerous to use a cell phone while driving.

The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development is testing technology that reroutes incoming phone calls and text messages when a handheld device is in a vehicle in motion. The pilot program is using DOT vehicles.

SB 9 sponsor Sen. Butch Gautreaux, D-Morgan City, said he proposed the stiffening of texting fines after following a driver he assumed to be drunk. The driver was texting, he told a transportation committee hearing on April 9.

2009 legislation:
Louisiana House Bill 146: Seeks to ban use of cell phones while driving on Louisiana’s roads unless a hands-free device is employed. Also would prohibit text messaging and emailing via various devices. The handheld cell phone ban was approved by the House Transportation Committee on May 18, 2009, and sent to the House floor for a full debate. It was approved by the House on May 27, but with an amendment that watered down the plan by making violations a secondary offense. Sent to the Senate where the handheld cell phone legislationwas “voluntarily deferred” by the frustrated sponsor, Rep. Austin Badon of New Orleans. Badon missed a key hearing, saying he was delayed in traffic, but it appears the bill was doomed anyway.

Legislation notes:
Rep. Austin Badon, D-New Orleans, fought a House amendment to his HB 146 that reduced violations to a secondary offense, meaning police would need another reason for pulling over drivers. “We don’t need to water this down,” Badon told fellow representatives. The amendment was approved on a 56-40 vote and HB 146 then passed on a 57-41.

Badon missed the June 9 committee hearing on his HB 146 because he was stuck in traffic, reports said. The representative said it didn’t matter — he withdrew the handheld cell phone legislation from consideration after a hostile reception the week before in the Senate Transportation committee.

Badon tried again with HB 146 after his previous hands-free bill was approved in the House but died in the full Senate. Badon’s 2009 cell phone legislation calls for fines of $100 for a first-time violation, $150 for a second, $200 for a third and $250 for all others. Enforcement would have begin Jan. 1, 2010. He plans to renew the fight in 2010.

Badon makes an interesting point about the advantages of keeping cell phones out of drivers’ hands: “The sight of someone holding a phone while driving erratically also can anger other drivers, creating even more danger in traffic.”

The 2009 legislative session in Louisiana began April 27 and ended June 25, later than in most states.

The texting prohibition and the cell phone restrictions on young drivers took effect Aug. 15, 2008. The sponsor was Sen. Julie Quinn, R-Metairie.

The state Highway Safety Commission reports that cell phones were a factor in 2,187 accidents during 2008, including 10 fatalities.

HB 402, passed by the House and Senate in May 2008, prohibits school bus drivers from using cell phones. The law was inspired by a citizen complaint about a chatty driver

“We want our school bus drivers, who have precious commodities, our children, to focus on driving,” said Sen. Dale Erdey, R-Livingston.

California state Sen. Joe Simitian, who wrote the famous California hands-free laws, said he consulted with a legislator in Louisiana about similar bills.