Legislators to seek input to cell phone legislation
March 9th, 2009
KVUE-TV, Austin
On Tuesday morning, members of the Texas House Transportation Committee will get public input on 12 different proposed bills outlawing cell phone use while driving in Texas.
As of 2007, 16-year olds just receiving their driving permits and school bus drivers are the only groups in Texas banned from talking on the cell phone while driving.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, talking on cell phones while driving is responsible for 25-percent of all traffic accidents.
“It’s probably under reported, I do believe that it’s probably the most underreported cause of accidents,” said Sam King, a defensive driving instructor in Austin.
One of the 12-proposed bills would include a total ban of talking behind the wheel even with a hands-free device. However, most of the other proposals exclude hands-free devices and some make exceptions for using cell phones in cars in cases of emergencies.
Representative Jose Menendez, D-San Antonio, an author of two of the proposed bills, including one banning cell phone use in school zones, says that representatives from two different law enforcement agencies, the Texas Department of Public Safety and the San Antonio Police Department, will participate in the hearing, which begins at 8:00 a.m. in E2.014 at the State Capitol.