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Beginning July 1, people who get behind the wheel in Iowa will have to save their text messages for L8R.
The state's new ban on texting while driving affects all drivers. Drivers under 18 who have intermediate licenses will be prohibited from using phones altogether while driving.
Iowa's neighbor to the west will soon follow suit. A Nebraska texting ban goes into effect July 15.
The new Iowa law allows drivers to talk on and dial their mobile phones, but it prohibits sending, reading or composing text messages.
The two laws follow a national trend that has brought regulations on texting and driving to states nationwide.
Guam, Washington, D.C., and 28 states all ban text messaging by drivers, according to the Governors Highway Safety Association. Iowa and Nebraska were the 21st and 22nd states, respectively, to adopt the laws.
It's too early to know how effective texting bans are in curbing the behavior, because most of the laws are relatively new. Still, the laws send a good message, said David Teater, senior director of transportation initiatives for the National Safety Council.
“What's important about the law is it kind of puts a stake in the ground and says ‘Society just does not accept this behavior,' ” Teater said.
Texting while driving is a particularly dangerous form of distracted driving, Teater said, because it involves visual, mechanical and cognitive distractions.
“Your eyes are off the road, your hands are off the wheel and your mind is not engaged,” Teater said. “It's like driving with your eyes closed.”
Iowa and Nebraska lawmakers were right to enact the bans, Teater said, but each made a mistake, in his opinion. The two states are among just five that have made the act a secondary offense. That means law enforcement officers can cite someone for texting while driving, but only if they have another reason for pulling over the driver. Officers won't be able to stop drivers on the road just for texting.
“It'll be hard to enforce,” said Mills County Sheriff Eugene Goos.
Making texting while driving a primary offense would help officers address the problem more effectively, said Pottawattamie County Sheriff Jeff Danker.
“If you see it, you need to be able to stop them and issue a citation,” Danker said.
Compared with their Nebraska counterparts, Iowa lawmakers used a light touch when devising the penalty.
In Nebraska, drivers caught texting behind the wheel could face a $200 fine for the first offense, $300 for a second offense and $500 for a third offense. Each offense also equals three points against someone's driver's license.
In its first year, the Iowa law is somewhat advisory. Each offender will be issued a warning. Beginning July 1, 2011, someone caught texting while driving could face a simple misdemeanor — a nonmoving violation — punishable by a $30 fine.
But that doesn't mean the law won't be effective, said Iowa State Patrol Col. Patrick Hoye. Iowa's seat belt law began with a six-month warning period, he said.
“Our seat belt compliance is 93 percent — one of the highest in the nation,” Hoye said. “It does work.”
Iowa usually has more than 400 road fatalities annually. Last year, 372 people died in wrecks on Iowa roads.
“We see it time and time again in talking to a driver. “ ‘Hey, I was texting. I looked down for just a second.' Our whole focus is on reducing fatalities and injuries on the highway,” Hoye said. “I think this is a great step.”
The Iowa Legislature isn't likely to revisit the law in the next session, said Rep. Clel Baudler, R-Greenfield.
Baudler, a retired Iowa State Patrol trooper, said lawmakers will evaluate the law over time. If the law seems to be effective, texting while driving could become a primary offense.
Contact the writer:
444-1310, elizabeth.ahlin@owh.com
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