(
)
ALBANY — OMG! U btr wtch out!
New Yorkers would face one of the toughest distracted-driving laws in the nation — banning the use of almost all handheld electronic devices — under sweeping legislation Gov. Cuomo proposed yesterday.
The bill would raise texting behind the wheel to a “primary” offense and increase penalties for using any electronic device to $150 per fine and three points on your license — sanctions equal to driving 10 mph over the speed limit or crossing a double yellow line.
The ban would apply not only to phones, but to nearly all electronic devices from iPads to Kindles to laptops. Using such gadgets while in the driver’s seat is “nothing less than a lethal activity,” Cuomo said.
“Current warnings, educational programs and driving laws aren’t working,” Cuomo said. “We need to impose a true deterrent to stop people from driving while using an electronic device and to keep our roads and citizens safe.”
State law already bars drivers from texting or chatting without a hands-free device. Both are now two-point offenses.
But offenses for texting are considered “secondary,” meaning cops can enforce the law only if they catch drivers violating another traffic law.
Cuomo’s legislation would raise such violations to a primary offense and boost the penalty to three points, putting a driver well on the way to the total for a license suspension — 11 points in 18 months.
The governor does not intend the law to apply to MP3 players, GPS navigation units or satellite radios “attached to the car and not held in a conspicuous manner,” an administration official said.
“It sounds like it makes a lot of sense,” said David Teater of the National Safety Council, which supports a total ban on phone use while driving.
“We believe that when a driver is driving a car they ought to be driving a car, not talking on the phone, trying to close a business deal or arguing with a spouse or texting a neighbor or updating Facebook,” Teater said.
The NSC estimates that 1.4 million crashes — or 23 percent of the total — result each year from drivers who improperly use phones to call or text.
In 2008, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration reported that distracted drivers contributed to one in six fatal collisions.
The prospects for passage of Cuomo’s proposal — coming just 10 days before the scheduled June 20 end of the legislative session — are unclear. Such legislation has traditionally faced more resistance in the Democratic-controlled Assembly than the Republican-run Senate.
The Cuomo bill goes even further than legislation passed last month by the Senate, which would raise texting to a primary offense. That legislation’s sponsor, Sen. Carl Marcellino (R-Nassau), praised Cuomo’s support, but balked at a sweeping ban on all electronic devices.
“The governor’s bill is very expansive — I want to look at it carefully,” Marcellino said. “I’m glad the governor’s there. It’s a good thing that he’s engaged on this issue. It will give it some clout and give it some momentum.”
Get the message?
Gov. Cuomo is proposing a total ban on the use of gadgets behind the wheel. His bill would:
* Raise texting and cellphone-talking violations to a three-point license penalty. It takes 11 points in 18 months to lose a license.
* Elevate texting to a “primary” offense.
* Hit violators with a $150 fine.
* Exclude MP3 players and GPS devices