By Clark Corbin
The Idaho Falls Post Register
BOISE, Idaho — After years of debate and failed attempts, members of the Idaho House on Tuesday approved a ban on texting while driving.
Lawmakers voted 53-17 to pass Senate Bill 1274.
The measure would make texting while driving an infraction that would not count against a person’s driving record for insurance purposes.
Drivers still would be allowed to use voice-activated or hands-free devices without penalty.
Police, firefighters and on-duty emergency personnel would be exempt from the law.
Idaho Falls Police Chief Steve Roos supports the ban on texting but said it may be difficult for officers to enforce it. Although Roos noted that inattentive driving regulations are already in place, he said a texting ban would strengthen those regulations.
“I consider texting while driving roughly the same as drinking and driving, so I don’t think it’s an overreach of government authority,” Roos said. “There have been some difficult scenes at fatal accidents where you can tell the last time (the driver) sent a text.”
Additionally, Roos said he doesn’t believe the exemption for law enforcement personnel was necessary.
Rep. Julie Ellsworth, a Boise Republican who pushed the bill, said the Idaho State Police, several insurance companies and Verizon Wireless supported the texting-while-driving ban.
Idaho Falls Republican Rep. Linden Bateman voted for the texting ban as a safety measure. The ban, Bateman said, would go beyond inattentive driving laws.
“The average teenager is so skillful at texting that they don’t think they are driving in an inattentive way and don’t think they are violating the law,” Bateman said. “Now we’re making it clear they are violating the law. That’s the main benefit of the whole thing: They can’t rationalize it now and can’t make any excuses.”
The measure will be returned to the Senate, which approved an earlier version Feb. 21 on a 29-6 vote.
While the bill was in the House, technical amendments were added, and senators must sign off on those changes for it to advance.
The amendment states that texting while driving, technically, shall not be considered a moving violation - even if the offender is driving - when it comes to establishing insurance rates.
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