TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WFLA) — Texting and driving is banned in Florida.
Nevertheless, lawmakers in Tallahassee wish to take it a step additional, with a hands-free bill now shifting via the statehouse.
Whereas the invoice has rallied up assist within the Senate, it appears to be caught within the Home. This can be a comparable pattern that Floridians noticed final session, however as a substitute of it being caught within the Home, it was held up within the Senate, which now leaves advocates questioning: what is the maintain up?
Whether or not or not it’s checking social media or taking a look at instructions in your map, the hands-free invoice seeks to ban any and all cellphone use within the palm of your hand whereas driving.
“It’s totally harmful; I do know lots of people lose their lives to distracted driving,” FSU pupil Kayla Kastor stated.
“Lots of people round me use social media whereas driving, and it is unsafe,” FSU pupil Kyle Gutierrez stated. “I do know lots of people who’ve been harm from distracted driving.”
College students, dad and mom, and advocates are all calling out lawmakers, hoping it can kickstart the motion to get the Home model throughout the end line.
“You possibly can’t keep away from accountability by doing this, you may’t disguise behind your chair by doing this, we all know who you might be, and we see what you might be doing,” father Demetrius Branca said.
Branca lost his son Anthony after a distracted driver killed him in 2014. Since then, he has been a passionate fighter to get this laws signed into regulation.
8 On Your Aspect spoke to Branca about his issues and requested him what his message to Home Committee Chairs can be. Branca shared, that the Committee Chair of the Government Operations Subcommittee must get their priorities straight and take into account the invoice this legislative session.
“It is unfathomable,” Branca stated. “I can not think about what sort of cold-hearted, stone-hearted particular person can be prepared to permit individuals to die in droves for their very own comfort as a result of they do not like to make use of a Bluetooth whereas they’re driving. To me that is unconscionable, however that’s what’s occurring at the moment as we speak within the legislature.”
Though the invoice is stalled within the Home, it continues to garner up assist within the Senate, however that does not come with out pushback from lawmakers. Some Senators will not assist the present language within the invoice till additional restrictions are added for many who break the regulation.
“If we’re actually going to crack down on distracted driving, we might be together with issues like shaving, which we have all seen, doing all of your make-up in your car, consuming whereas driving, these are all distractions,” stated State Senator Blaise Ingoglia, R-Spring Hill. “Something that takes someone’s consideration off of the highway into one thing else within the car must be a type of distracted driving and it must be handled at as such.”
The invoice might be heard for a vote on the Senate ground Wednesday. Advocates hope it’s then picked up by the Home, to ensure that it make it to the Governor’s desk.
