Motorists are free to chat and text on cell phones behind the wheel in Maryland for at least another year after lawmakers Thursday unceremoniously killed a proposed ban.
A House of Delegates committee quietly voted to reject a measure that would haverequired motorists to use hands-free cell phone devices while driving. The Senate had approved the legislation after reducing penalties and making violations a secondary offense ? meaning police officers couldn?t pull a motorist over just for talking on the phone.
“I am disappointed,” said Del. Elizabeth Bobo, a Howard County Democrat. “I vote for it every year on the committee and every year it fails. I really think people want this ban.”
The House Environmental Matters Committee voted 12 to 9 against the measure, with members of both parties on each side. That committee had already rejected a ban on text messaging and cell phone use by school bus drivers earlier this session.
The committee conducted the vote with little discussion, said Del. Dana Stein, a Baltimore County Democrat who voted against the measure. Stein and other opponents said dialing and holding the phone is less dangerous than other activities drivers do behind the wheel.
“Cell phone use, in terms of potential distractions on the road, is pretty low on the list,” Stein said.
Bans on cell phone use have come before the General Assembly for more than a decade, and some lawmakers said a ban on text messaging alone has better prospects for success next year than a ban on hand-held phones.
Supporters like Russell and Kim Hurd, an Abingdon couple whose daughter died in a January car crash in Florida, said they plan to aggressively pursue the issue. Their daughter?s car was struck by a truck whose driver who was using his phone to send a message to his company, Russell Hurd said. “If they can save one person from feeling the way we do, then it?s worth it.”
Four states and Washington, D.C., ban the use of hand-held phones, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Every state has at least considered some form of cell phone bill in the last three years.
