Ban on using hand-held devices while driving moves forward in Iowa Senate

DES MOINES - Legislation that would ban the use of hand-held electronic devices while driving cleared a major hurdle Tuesday when Senate Transportation Committee members voted without dissent to approve it and keep it alive for further action yet this session.

Tuesday's approval meant Senate Study Bill 1079 survived this week's 'funnel” deadline to pass at least one standing legislative committee to stay eligible for further consideration. Passage came after senators amended the bill to exempt hands-free built-in or voice-activated global positioning systems and allowed for hand-held cellphone use for emergency calls.

The proposed legislation, which won 3-0 subcommittee support with the amendment from Rep. Gary Worthan, R-Storm Lake, would ban the use of hand-held electronic devices while driving. Representatives of auto manufacturers also asked that the bill be modified to allow for future advancements like voice-activated texting or built-in navigation that would not require setting by hand while driving.

A similar measure was slated to be taken up by the House Transportation Committee on Tuesday, but it was delayed until Wednesday. Worthan said he expects the panel to approve the measure but would delay enforcement of the $30 ticket per violation for one year during which time law officers would issue only warnings to motorists caught using a hand-held device.

'We're good to go,” said Worthan.

Senators also have passed a separate measure that would make Iowa's current anti-texting law a primary offense rather than a secondary violation that requires another reason for law officers to stop a vehicle involving a driver who may also be distracted.

Sen. Michael Breitbach, R-Strawberry Point, who is the manager of both bills, said he could live with the House requirement of a one-year warning period but wants both distracted driving bills available in the event the ban on hand-held devices runs into unexpected opposition in the House.

'They haven't been able to get that through the House before. I wanted to make sure they had both options - either to make it a primary and/or to make it hands free,” he said Tuesday. 'This way they've got two options coming from our side.”

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