State bill would make texting while driving a primary offense

A bill that would make texting while driving a primary offense is one signature away from becoming Florida law.

Both chambers of the state Legislature have voted overwhelmingly in favor of bills that address distracted driving. The Senate voted April 25 to approve Senate Bill 76, which passed with a 33-5 vote. Days later, on April 29, the House of Representatives voted to approve House Bill 107 with a 108-7 vote. HB 107 was co-sponsored by Reps. Jackie Toledo and Emily Slosberg.

“Traffic safety is one our biggest concerns in law enforcement,” said Ocoee Police Chief Charlie Brown. “More people are injured and killed every year driving vehicles than almost anything else that happens. There are violent crimes and other things we do worry about. … But driving a car really is one of the most dangerous things that happens all day, and if there’s someone driving around distracted and not paying attention, then that danger is magnified, and it’s a big deal.”

Although texting while driving is already illegal in Florida, it’s only a secondary offense. That means an officer can only ticket someone for texting while driving if the person has been pulled over for something else, such as speeding or running a stoplight. If approved, the new law would make texting while driving a primary offense, meaning an officer would be able to pull someone over and give them a citation for texting while driving alone. 

“(One) of the problems (is) it’s very difficult to figure out who’s texting and who’s not texting,” Windermere Police Chief David Ogden said. “We see everybody (on their phones). I can tell you — anecdotally at least — when our officers stop vehicles for speeding and different kinds of things like that — hands down, I would say in the 90 percentile range — people are on their phones. Whether it can be proved that they’re texting and driving is going to be another story, but everybody uses their phone for everything, and they also do it while they’re driving.”

Those in violation would be issued a $30 fine on first offense, and the fine doubles to $60 on second offense. Those fines don’t include any court costs or additional fees. If approved, the new law would take effect July 1; however, officers won’t be issuing citations until Jan. 1, 2020. Beginning Oct. 1, officers only will be giving out verbal or written warnings to those who violate the new law. 

In addition to making texting while driving a primary offense, the bill also places restrictions on operating a cell phone while driving through a school zone or construction zone. The bill makes school and construction zones “hands-free” areas, meaning it would be illegal to hold your phone while driving through these areas. A person would be permitted to talk on their phone while driving through these areas if they are doing so in a hands-free manner, such as with a speaker phone. 

“Distracted driving does cause a lot of crashes,” Winter Park Police Chief Michael Deal said. “There’s a lot of crashes — rear-end collisions and other types of crashes — where the driver was obviously distracted by some measure, but unless there’s a witness or the driver admits that they were texting … you’re not really ever going to know. Most people who are at fault in a crash aren’t going to sit there and say, ‘yeah, I was texting on my phone and wasn’t paying attention.’ It just doesn’t happen that way.”

The bill does not affect talking on the phone while driving in areas outside of school or construction zones. Additionally, individuals who are operating a phone while driving but are doing so for reasons such as navigation purposes, to report a crime or to receive safety-related information, would not be in violation.

“(The bill) does talk about talking on the phone while you’re in a school zone or a work zone,” Brown said. “While you’re in a school zone or a work zone, you have to have hands-free device. Other times, you can use the phone to communicate verbally but not by text. You’re not allowed to cover your ears (with a headset) … in a car — but a Bluetooth device; that’s all fine. It’s trying to get rid of people communicating by using their fingers on a phone for texting.”

“I think it’s a smart way to kind of move forward, to be honest,” Ogden said. “Many of the other states have completely just banned out speaking on your phone or using your phone while you’re driving. I don’t think they wanted to fully go to that measure, but I think it’s a smart (piece) of legislation by at least pulling out the school zones and the construction zones to make sure (they’re hands-free) because those are two areas that are important to all of our community — (that) being kids and workers on the side of the road.”

Brown added a simple message to drivers: It can wait.

“Put the phone down, pull over on the side of the road or just wait until you get to your next destination,” Brown said. “It can wait. It’s not that important that we are in constant communication. Our lives — your lives — are more important, so put it down.”

“I think it’s a good bill,” Deal said. “I think it’s going to save lives. It’s going to reduce injuries and crashes. I think it’s a good thing for everybody.”