GHSA Chairman Outlines Position on National Texting While Driving Bill

Vernon F. Betkey, Jr. participated in BusinessWeek's "Debate Room" outlining the Association's views on the ALERT Drivers Act of 2009. This bill would require states to enact laws banning texting while driving or lose 25 percent of their federal highway funding. The text of Chairman Betkey's article is at the end of this message.

To view the complete BusinessWeek "Debate Room" forum on this topic, visit http://www.businessweek.com/debateroom/.

State cell phone and texting laws as well as an overview of the distracted driving issue can be found online at www.ghsa.org/html/stateinfo/laws/cellphone_laws.html.

Chairman Betkey's Distracted Driving Forum presentation will be posted at www.ghsa.org/ on Thursday morning.

ALERT Act Needs Revision

By: Vernon F. Betkey, Jr. Chairman, Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA). GHSA is the national organization that represents state highway safety agencies. Betkey also heads the Maryland Highway Safety Office where he directs a variety of programs that enhance highway safety. GHSA does not support the current version of the Alert Drivers Act of 2009--legislation that would require states to adopt laws for texting while driving or lose 25 percent of highway funds --as we feel states should be encouraged to pass texting bans with the carrot of financial incentives, not the stick of a sanction. In fact, this is a terrible time to consider reducing highway funding given the economic necessity of these dollars in the states. Additionally, GHSA notes that eighteen states have already passed these bans with the majority of these states having acted in 2009. We expect at least 30-40 states will act in the next two years--all without federal intervention.

There are a number of other things the federal government can do to address texting while driving. These include:

Fund research to develop effective methods for enforcing texting and cell phone bans. While a number of states currently have banned texting, enforcing such bans has proven difficult. Additional study of the effectiveness of state bans is needed.

Fund research to determine the nature and scope of the distracted driving problem. It is very difficult to ascertain the scope of the distracted driving problem given that the public is not likely to readily admit guilt in a crash investigation. Special studies are needed using subpoenaed phone records to determine the involvement of phoning or texting in a crash.

Fund a media campaign to alert the public to the dangers of distracted driving. This effort is needed to help develop a culture that will make the practice socially unacceptable, similar to how drunk driving has come to be perceived with the vast majority of the public.