Legislature unlikely to get hung up on texting ban

House Speaker Pat Murphy said he won't hang up on calls to ban texting and cell phone use by motorists, but he won't allow it to be a distraction, either.

“We can have a debate, but short and limited debate,” the Dubuque Democrat said.

With growing evidence that cell phone use is as dangerous as driving while impaired, some legislators want Iowa to join at least 18 states in making it illegal to send or receive text messages or e-mail while driving. Some states ban talking on cell phones while driving; some ban texting.

Rep. Ako Abdul-Samad, D-Des Moines, was the driving force behind an unsuccessful attempt to pass a ban last year. His bill, which would have fined violators $30, never gained traction in the House Transportation Committee, but Abdul-Samad has promised to try again.

The 2010 legislative session convenes Monday.

Murphy and House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, D-Des Moines, said the ban isn't needed, because reckless driving and careless driving laws cover the problem.

“Abdul-Samad is pushing for more clarity, to specifically prohibit cell phone use,” McCarthy said, “but in practice, law enforcement has a tool to write a ticket now.”

Murphy is “vehemently opposed” to the bill but said he will follow the will of his caucus.

“We aren't going to waste a lot of time on texting,” Murphy said. “I want to focus on economy and jobs. It's a public safety issue, but so is eating in a car. So unless this creates a pile of texting cops, I don't see how it improves the economy.”

If it did, Murphy would have to find a way to pay for those “texting cops” at the same time the state is looking for a way to keep Iowa State Patrol troopers on the road.

Democratic Gov. Chet Culver has proposed shifting $50 million a year of state patrol costs to the Road Use Tax Fund, which generally is the funding source for road construction and maintenance.

His plan is enthusiastically endorsed by troopers, who have agreed to concessions to save 43 jobs. With 382 troopers, ISP staffing is at a 45-year low, said Darin Snedden, State Patrol Officers Council president and a trooper from Mount Vernon.

He argues that troopers should be protected from funding vagaries.

“Public safety is a core mission of the state,” Snedden said. “To not have troopers out there puts the safety of the public at risk.”

Shifting patrol costs to the road fund may hit a speed bump or two, however. Majority Democrats have been non-committal.

“Everything is on the table,” said Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, D-Council Bluffs. “It's something our caucuses will have to weigh.”

Road builders are opposed, though. They fought a similar shift of funding in the 1990s.

That the state funded troopers out of the road fund for 12 years justifies his proposal, said Culver, who noted federal stimulus funds are helping with transportation projects.