LANSING – With cell phone use on the rise, lawmakers are once again looking at the possibility of limiting that use while driving a car.
Legislation banning texting on a cell phone while driving passed the House late last term, but did not advance in the Senate during the lame-duck session. But a bill that would have prohibited using a cell phone unless it was through a hands-free device failed in the House.
Eight states already prohibit texting while driving, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Rep. Pam Byrnes (D-Chelsea), chair of the House Transportation Committee, said it’s her intent to move ahead with a hearing on the legislation when lawmakers return next week.
She said the issue is both important to the legislators who are sponsoring the bills and an issue that deserves at least a hearing. The committee meeting next week would be for testimony only.
“We’ll see how we go from there,” Byrnes said.
Other states are considering bans on texting while driving along with prohibiting all cell phone use in the car. The legislation pending in the House is HB 4369 , HB 4370 and HB 4394 .
According to NCSL, the number of text messages sent on cell phones has risen sharply from 57.2 billion in 2005 to 600.5 billion in 2008. Those numbers do not distinguish how many texts were sent or read while a person was behind the wheel.
Nine other states have also moved to limiting cell phone use for young drivers or prohibiting school bus drivers from using a cell phone while at work.
Byrnes said legislation dealing with school bus drivers (HB 4362 ) will also be considered during the committee hearing.
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