Florida ban on texting while driving moves forward, passing the state senate
Texting while driving could soon be illegal in the Sunshine State as the Florida senate has unanimously approved a bill that would make texting while driving a secondary offense.
Florida moved closer to a ban on texting while driving as a bill moved through the state senate photo Oregon Department of Transportation
Police would have to stop drivers for an offense like speeding first.
That first violation would be a $30 fine plus court costs. A 2nd five years would add three points to the driver’s license and a $60 fine.
Republican Sen. Nancy Detert said this is the fourth year she has sponsored a texting ban bill and that Florida is now one of only five states without a ban.
“By passing a law banning texting while driving, Florida continues the momentum in statehouses across the country to address this dangerous form of driver distraction,” Kevin Bakewell, senior vice president, AAA – The Auto Club Group, said in a press release. “In the last three years alone, more than half of all states have enacted text messaging bans for all drivers. AAA is encouraged by the recent and rapid progress toward our national campaign goal of passing texting bans in all 50 states.”
If the House passes the bill, Florida would become the 40th state to ban texting while driving, AAA said.
“The bill is long overdue,” House Minority Leader Sen. Chris Smith, D-Fort Lauderdale, told Tampabay.com. “We’ve lost too many young people, too many people in general.”
[…] important to remind them about being safe behind the wheel. Make sure that your teen understands not to text and drive. You can even have them install an app that will not make it possible for them to use their phone […]
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