A bill that would let Georgia drivers touch their cellphones under certain circumstances cleared a state Senate committee Wednesday.
Motorists are currently prohibited from handling their phones except in limited circumstances. Senate Bill 203 would allow them to touch their phone when their vehicle is at a “full and complete stop” at a stoplight or stop sign — as long as the phone is secured in a phone stand or mount. Motorists could also pull over to the side of a road and stop to check their phones, even if they’re not legally parked.
A similar proposal — Senate Bill 356 — would allow motorists to hold their phones at stoplights and stop signs, even if they weren’t in a mount. But that measure has gone nowhere in the Public Safety Committee. So that bill’s sponsor, Sen. Frank Ginn, R-Danielsville, offered the latest version as a substitute to SB 203, which previously dealt with windshield phone mounts.
Ginn chairs the Transportation Committee, which approved his substitute bill Wednesday by a vote of 6-3.
The committee heard no testimony. At a previous hearing on SB 356, law enforcement and safety advocates said allowing drivers to hold their phones would lead to more distraction and danger on Georgia roads. Ginn says he just wants to keep traffic moving and focus enforcement on motorists who hold their phones while their vehicle is moving.
Ginn’s bill now goes to the Rules Committee, which will determine whether it gets a vote by the full Senate.
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