• 20
  • May
    2010

Laws against texting while driving are sweeping the nation, and all indications are that Arizona may be next in line to enact such a law. Currently Phoenix has an anti-texting law, but drivers elsewhere in Arizona are not specifically prohibited from texting while driving.

While texting is not expressly forbidden in Arizona, a police officer may cite a texter for reckless driving under current law, and that has caused some lawmakers to question the need for a ban. But most of the opposition seems to stem from Arizona's freedom-loving ways -- many residents are resistant to government telling people what to do and what not to do.

With mounting evidence that using cell phones while driving can kill, Arizona may be finally ready to overcome three years of resistance and pass the anti-texting bill. First proposed in 2007, anti-texting bills have heretofore faced enough legislator opposition to preclude passage in the state.

One national study has shown that texters are 23 times more likely than other drivers to cause a crash or a near-miss. Other studies have demonstrated that any use of a cell phone while driving -- texting or otherwise -- is more dangerous than driving drunk.

Under S.B. 1334, the anti-texting law that has already passed the Arizona Senate, texting while driving would be considered a non-moving traffic violation subject to a $50 fine. The bill would outlaw writing, sending or reading messages on cell phones or similar devices.

But even if the bill becomes law, Arizona's anti-regulation stance will be reflected in the bill's enforcement. While a police officer would be able to issue a ticket upon observing a driver texting, he would not be authorized to confiscate a driver's phone to check the message history and determine if the driver was texting in traffic. The bill would also exempt drivers from tickets if they pull over to text or use their cell phones solely to make telephone calls.

Public safety advocates are concerned that the law may actually weaken penalties for texting while driving. If cited under current Arizona law for reckless driving, a texter would face up to four months in jail and a $750 fine, far more substantial than the penalty provided in S.B. 1334.