On July 1, Iowa will join 30 other states in outlawing any phone use while driving that isn’t hands-free. The law was passed earlier this year, and will replace Iowa’s current rules about phone usage while driving, which law enforcement officers say were difficult to enforce, since only texting was banned.
July 1 is the beginning of the fiscal year and the date new laws take effect, unless otherwise stated. Iowa’s majority-Republican General Assembly this year passed more than 170 laws dealing with education, firearms, crime, health care, paid family leave and more. Here’s what goes into effect this week.
The Republican governor pushed most — but not all — her priorities across the finish line.
This week on the podcast: legislative forums in Eastern Iowa and the second funnel week at the Iowa Capitol.
Iowa will join 30 other states that passed laws making it illegal to handle a cellphone while driving, starting July 1. Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the new law Wednesday, surrounded by people who have lost loved ones to distracted driving.
Drivers in Iowa will be prohibited from operating cell phones and other devices with their hands once Reynolds signs it into law as expected
Cellphones should not be allowed in students’ hands during class or in drivers’ hands while on the road, Iowa state lawmakers decreed Tuesday as they moved the proposals closer to becoming state law.
Also, parents are asking Iowa AG Brenna Bird to stop her support for a lawsuit they fear will eliminate federal protections for children with disabilities.
Law enforcement officials, advocates and grieving families of Iowans killed by distracted drivers packed a Senate committee room Wednesday to again implore lawmakers to ban motorists' handheld use of mobile devices behind the wheel.
From a casino moratorium to immigration policy to a hands-free driving law, here’s a look at the hot-button issues likely to resurface during this year’s Iowa legislative session, which begins Monday.
Also in the Capitol Notebook: A campaign is launched for hands-free driving law.
A Johnson County judge faced the question of whether to make an example of driver Drake Brezina or a testament of him — to make him pay behind bars, or behind a microphone, sharing the tragic consequences of his decision to focus on his phone instead of the road.
Why Iowa struggles to pass hands-free driving laws, New law protects bikers, mobile pedestrians in crosswalks, Much progress made, but flood protection next for Time Check Neighborhood, Daily News Podcast Survey
Bills limiting cellphone use while driving by mandating hands-free technology have been introduced in the Iowa Legislature since 2019, but all attempts at passage have been unsuccessful. More than 30 other states have passed such laws. Why won't Iowa?
Also, lawmakers advance traffic camera ban, hands-free driving bill
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