Will Florida be the next to ban texting while driving?

As of January 2012, text messaging is banned for all drivers in 35 states and the District of Columbia. In 7 addidtional states there are laws against “novice” or “youth” drivers texting. These states include: Alabama, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, and West Virginia.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety offers a map of states in the United States that have enacted laws concerning texting and cell phone use in vehicles (Graphic: http://www.iihs.org/laws/maptextingbans.aspx).

The Florida Legislature has recently announced plans to hold discussions in 2012 to enact a ban on texting in vehicles for the state of Florida. The National Safety Council feels that cell phone use or texting in a vehicle is a serious threat to public safety that must be taken seriously by lawmakers. They have launched a campaign against “distracted driving” which includes both cell phone use (including using hands-free devices) and texting while in a vehicle. For more information, checkout their “Texting While Driving” brochure online at: http://www.nsc.org/safety_road/Employer%20Traffic%20Safety/Pages/TextingWhileDrivingBrochureNational.aspx.