West Virginia: Cell phone laws, legislation

Cell phone, texting news: Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin has submitted legislation that would ban text messaging and the use of handheld cell phones while driving in West Virginia. Operation with hands-free devices would be allowed.

Tomblin’s original plan was for secondary enforcement of the distracted driving laws, meaning police would not be able to stop and cite motorists for that reason alone. On Feb. 1, the Senate Judiciary Committee amended (and approved) the Senate version so that text messaging would be subject to primary enforcement, but use of handheld cell phones would be secondary.

The governor previously indicated he probably would sign legislation with primary enforcement, should it reach his desk.

The House and Senate Transportation Committees also approved and advanced the governor’s bills, HB 4091 and SB 211. The votes came on Jan. 24 (Senate panel) and Jan. 25 (House panel).

“I want West Virginians to remain free from distracted drivers on our public highways,” Tomblin said during his State of the State address to the Legislature Jan. 11.

At least seven bills that seek to ban texting while driving have been introduced for the 2012 legislative session (below). Three include a ban on handheld cell phones.

Current prohibitions:

• Drivers with learner’s permits or intermediate licenses are prohibited from using cell phones while driving (primary offense). Read the law.
• School bus drivers may not use cell phones while operating the vehicles.

Distracted driving legislation (2012)
Senate Bill 211 (original version, see Sub2 below): Would prohibit drivers in West Virginia from using wireless communication devices without hands-free equipment. Includes texting and cell phone calls. Fines: $100 (first offense), then $200, then $400. Secondary enforcement only. Novice driver restrictions on cell phones and texting would remain, with primary enforcement. Amended and approved unanimously by the Senate Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on Jan. 24. Latest legislative action: Amended and approved by the Judiciary Committee on Feb. 1. See SB 211 Sub 2 below. (Kessler, Hall as requested by governor)

• SB 211 Sub2 changes: Makes texting subject to primary enforcement, but enforcement of the handheld cell phone law secondary. Fines $50, $100 and $200. Three points assessed against driver’s license on third and subsequent violations.

SB 47: Would prohibit text messaging while driving. Fine: $25. No points. (Beach)

SB 79: Seeks to ban text messaging while driving. Fines: $50, then $100, then $200. No points. (Unger)

House Bill 2490: Would prohibit text messaging by drivers as well as “additional technology activities” (Internet, music, games, etc.) using handheld mobile communication devices. Fines: $250, then $500, then $1,000. (Miley)

HB 4005: Would prohibit text messaging by all drivers. (Frazier)

HB 4075: Would outlaw use of handheld wireless communications devices by drivers, including cell phones. Hands-free OK if driver “exercises a high degree of caution.” Categorized as “reckless driving offense.” (Guthrie)

HB 4091: Would prohibit drivers from using wireless communication devices without hands-free equipment. Includes texting and cell phone calls. Fines: $100 (first offense), then $200, then $400. Secondary enforcement only. Novice driver restrictions on cell phones and texting would remain, with primary enforcement. Approved by the House Transportation Committee on Jan. 25. (Thompson, Armstead as requested by governor)

Distracted driving news (2012):
The Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approved its toughened version of Senate Bill 211 (Sub2) on Feb. 1. The measure now goes before the full Senate.

Senate Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman Robert Beach, D-Monongalia, says he’s optimistic that the governor’s distracted driving measures will get through the Senate. “The direction we’re taking is coming from the federal level,” he told the Charleston Gazette. “Many states are already adopting this.” The Senate panel considered the governor’s plan on Jan. 20 and approved it Jan. 24.

Wording of the governor’s distracted driving bill caused some heads to spin on the House Roads and Transportation Committee. “Are we all thoroughly confused?” the panel’s chairman asked Jan. 18. The chairman, Delegate Margaret Staggers, said the governor’s plan for secondary enforcement “doesn’t seem very practical” and indicated her committee would consider bills with more teeth.

Gov. Tomblin said Jan. 18: “If they want to make it a primary offense … I’ll probably sign it.” An aide to Tombin said the secondary enforcement tag on the governor’s bill was designed to avoid points against a violator’s driver’s license.

Staggers, D-Fayette, is looking for alternative ways to stop West Virginians from driving while distracted. She says she finds merit in tax incentives for voice-activated hardware installation as well as additional penalties for distracted drivers who cause accidents. As for a ban on the use of handheld cell phones, “I don’t know if you can outlaw stupidity,” the Transportation Committee chairwoman told the Register-Herald Reporter.

Staggers says she sees “a good compromise” in a Republican plan that would provide for additional penalties for drivers who cause accidents if they were using a cell phones at the time.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Corey Palumbo says the governor’s support could end the annual legislative back-and-forth on texting and handheld cell phone laws.

Gov. Tomblin said in his address to the Legislature on Jan. 11: “With the advent of iPhones, BlackBerries, 4G networks, and texting, the number of people who are using mobile phones while driving has and continues to increase. And, with that increase, there has been an equally dramatic increase in the number of driving fatalities where distracted driving was involved. … I will submit legislation that will ban the use of cell phones without hands-free equipment and text messaging while driving.”

The Charleston Daily Mail called the governor’s plan for secondary enforcement of distracted driving laws “a modest, sensible approach that would not be unnecessarily intrusive and would not unnecessarily criminalize people.”

2011 distracted driving notes
The House approved a text messaging ban in February but in a heavily amended form that only provided for secondary enforcement. HB 2555 won handily (92-5) but died in the Senate as time ran out on the session.

Senate Judiciary Chairman Corey Palumbo said of the failure of distracted driving legislation in 2011 “tells me there’s very little concern for all the deaths on our roads in the House.”

Senate Majority Leader John Unger charged there was “chaos” in the House in the final days of the session: “None of our bills died in here (the Senate). They died over there.”

Upon HB 2555′s approval in the House (Feb. 17), Delegate Danny Wells, D-Kanawha, said: “I’m totally disappointed and discouraged. … As long as it’s not a primary offense (to text and drive), it’s just a worthless piece of paper.” He voted for the bill anyway

The HB 2555 proposal for a texting ban was trashed in the House Judiciary Committee, with the delegate who wrote the panel’s amended version calling the original “one of the worst bills I’ve ever seen.” Delegate Mark Hunt, D-Kanawha, says, “I think we need to go back and do a hands-free law,” Hunt said. He expects quick introduction of a rival bill that would ban handheld cell phones. Ironically, the bill’s sponsor eliminated a cell phone ban to increase HB 2555′s chances of passing.

Delegate Dale Martin, D-Putnam, is lead sponsor of the HB 2555 texting ban. Martin is chairman of the Roads and Transportation Committee. The original bill was modeled using U.S. Department of Transportation guidelines, Martin said.

“It’ll have a better chance of passing (than 2010′s HB 4013), Martin said (prior to the Judiciary Committee’s amendments). “I think the public is more aware of the hazard.” HB 4013 called for a ban on use of handheld cell phones, which complicated passage, Martin says.

The Select Committee on Infrastructure considered an earlier draft of the texting legislation in late December.

2011 distracted driving legislation (dead)
House Bill 2490: Seeks to ban text messaging by all drivers. Also cites “additional technology activities” requiring use of hands while driving, such as accessing the Internet, playing MP3s and using cameras. Excludes cell phones. Fines: $250 (first offense) then $500 and then $1,000. (Miley)

HB 2555: Would outlaw text messaging while driving via wireless communications devices. Fines $50 (first offense), then $100 and then $200. Also cites Internet use but excludes the entering of phone numbers for cell phone calls. No points. House Judiciary Committee substitute of Feb. 10 made significant changes: Bill now call for secondary enforcement; changes offense from misdemeanor to infraction; changes fines to $100/$200/$400. Latest action: OK’d by the House in a 92-5 vote on Feb. 17. (Martin)

Senate Bill 209: Would prohibit text messaging for all drivers in West Virginia. Primary enforcement. Misdemeanor. Fines $50 (first offense), then $100 and then $200. No points. Same as original version of HB 2555, above. (Unger)

SB 470: Would prohibit text messaging while driving. Includes Internet use. Primary enforcement. Misdemeanor. Fines $50 (first offense), then $100 and then $200. No points. Similar to SB 209/HB 2555. (Unger)

2010 cell phone, texting legislation (dead)
An Interim Joint Committee on Roads and Transportation developed HB 4013 for the 2010 session that would ban both text messaging and handheld phone use for drivers. In a compromise, the bill calls for texting while driving to be a primary offense, but use of a handheld cell phone would be a secondary offense. Meaning a law officer could pull over a driver solely for text messaging, but would need another reason to stop a violator talking on a cell phone. The compromise emerged from the committee on Dec. 9, 2009, after a good deal of debate. Update: The bill had traction but failed to advance in 2010.

Delegate Nancy Guthrie, D-Kanawha, says she’s not sure she’ll be lead sponsor of the distracted driving bill this year. Guthrie saw her bill on texting and cell phoning die on the last night of the 2009 regular session, and now says, “I may let someone else introduce it and try to run it through the judiciary committee.” She wanted primary enforcement for both distracted driving offenses in the 2011 plan (above), but said she was “realistic enough to know that this is a start.”

Earlier this fall, Delegate Guthrie told HandsFreeInfo.com: “The question before the committee is whether or not to reintroduce last year’s legislation or strip out restrictions on cell phone use and only try to pass a bill restricting texting.” She called the idea of stripping out cell phone restrictions “stunning.” The secondary enforcement provision of the new bill was a compromise that kept the handheld cell phone ban alive.

Under the bill, text messaging would bring fines of $50 for the first offense, $100 for the second and $200 after that. Cell phone penalties would be $25, $50 and $75.

Gov. Joe Manchin says he supports a ban on driving and text messaging on West Virginia roads and highways. Motor Vehicles Commissioner Joe Miller lobbied for the draft legislation, noting that cell phone-related deaths fell by hundreds in California after its ban was enacted.

HB 4013: Would ban drivers from text messaging and the use of handheld cell phones, meaning hands-free accessories would have to be employed. Secondary enforcement. Fines of $25. (Guthrie)

HB 2995: Would prohibit text messaging while driving. Fines $100/$200/$500. (Eldridge)

HB 2141: Would prohibit drivers under age 18 with level 1 and 2 licenses from using all wireless communications devices. Secondary enforcement. Fines $25/$50/$75. (Romine)

West Virginia Senate Bill 438: Would make text messaging while driving a primary offense and use of a handheld cell phone a secondary offense. Fines for texting $50/$100/$200. Fnes for using cell phones without a hands-free device $25/$50/$75. No points. Similar to HB 4013, above. (Unger)

SB 167: Seeks to prohibit all drivers from texting while driving. Secondary enforcement. Fines up to $100. Up to 3 points. (Unger)

SB 52: Would outlaw use of cell phones while driving unless a hands-free attachment is employed. Fines $100/$200/$500 no points. (Guills-Foster)

SB 367: Seeks to outlaw use of “additional technology” for handheld devices that provide access to digital media content such as text messages, e-mail, the Internet and games. Fines $100/$250/$500. (Minard)

2010 legislation notes
“I think House members, having passed legislation last year to curb texting and cell phone use while driving, will be very receptive to a similar bill emerging from the Senate,” House Speaker Rick Thompson told the Herald-Dispatch. “I will be interested to see exactly what the Senate produces.”

Sen. John Unger, D-Berkeley, sponsor of two distracted driving bills, noted: “There are folks who are advocating the ban of cell phones altogether in use on the roads,” Unger said. “We’ll see what comes out of committee. … I think (SB 438) has a pretty good shot at passing.”

“Even Oprah is pounding on this,” Unger said of distracted driving laws.

The 2009 legislation that was approved by the House failed to get through the Senate because of an unrelated last-minute amendment.

2009 cell phone, texting legislation:
HB 2621: Would have outlawed use of a wireless handheld communications device unless a hands-free accessory is attached. Included cell phones and text messaging devices. Versions were approved by the West Virginia House on March 27, 2009, and by the Senate on April 9, but died on the final night of the session due to an unrelated amendment tacked on by a senator.

HB 2995: Would prohibit text messaging while driving. Fines $100/$200/$500. (Similar to SB 131) Note HB 1876 above. Note: Carried over to 2010 session.

SB 131: Would prohibit drivers from using cell phones on West Virginia roads unless a hands-free device is employed, such as a headset or speaker system that does not require the use of hands.

2009 legislation notes:
State Sen. Dan Foster, D-Kanawha, plans to introduce legislation in 2010 that would ban text messaging and use of handheld cell phones while operating a motor vehicle in West Virginia. (Update: SB 52, above.) He supported similar legislation in 2009.

The 2009 legislation that was approved by the House was sunk in the Senate by a last-minute amendment regarding cell phone tower placements. “”It was just one of those thoughtless amendments that a member put in without considering all the work the three committees had put into the bill,” Delegate Guthrie said.

2009′s anti-text messaging bill HB 2995 was introduced in mid-March by Delegate Jeff Eldridge, D-Lincoln. It calls for secondary enforcement, meaning drivers could not be pulled over solely for text messaging or using handheld cell phones. The fine will be $25 with no driver’s license points or court costs.

Under SB 131 and HB 2995, fines would start at $100 and increase to $500 with three violations. No points would be assessed on the West Virginia driver’s license. Under HB 2621, fines would be capped at $25 with no points.

Gov. Joe Manchin proposed a ban on text messaging while driving, in response to the Los Angeles commuter train crash. “Texting, cell phones, all this,” Manchin told the Charleston Daily Mail. “I think it’s come to the point now that we see how distractive they are.”

Manchin later told the Register-Herald: “Some legislators asked me my opinion on (West Virginia cell phone and texting legislation). “It makes sense to me. I’m the one who is as guilty as anybody.”

Previous cell phone, texting legislation
In the winter 2008 session, the House narrowly approved a bill that would have made using a cell phone while driving a secondary offense, but it died in the Senate. Kanawha County Delegate Nancy Peoples’ cell-phone legislation inspired plenty of public debate. (HB 4047: Would require drivers to use hands-free devices while making cell phone calls. Drivers’ use of text-messaging devices would be prohibited. School bus drivers would be prohibited from using cell phones.)

“The facts are indisputable. Distracted driving puts all of us in danger,” Peoples wrote on her blog. “This legislation will give us a means to begin gathering data on how many accidents result from drivers who become distracted while using cell phones.”

Sen. Jeffrey Kessler, head of the Judiciary Committee, joined other lawmakers in the 2008 session seeking a ban on texting while driving.

The school bus driver ban on cell phone use was enacted in September 2008 by the state Board of Education.