Rossputin.com Rational Thinking About Our World

My state Representative, Claire Levy, she of the “unfounded notion of federalism” fame, is hard at work with a proposal that you just knew would come from someone who represents my district:

A requirement that people use hands-free technology when using a cell phone in a car. In typical “I know what’s good for you style", Levy defends her measure by saying “I think there’s a real pent-up feeling that this convenience has gotten out of control.”

How nice that she has appointed herself the arbiter of when our lives become too convenient.

Ms. Levy represents the worst possible combination of do-gooder and attorney, always looking for a way to tell people what to do and cost them money if they don’t obey. Not surprisingly, Governor Bill “Tax” Ritter has said he’d sign the measure.

The measure, HB1094 (click for text), completely prohibits drivers of “motor vehicle carriers regulated by the public utilities commission” from using a cell phone while the vehicle is moving.

For the rest of us, if we’re caught using our cell phones without some hands-free technology, it’s a $50 fine for the first offense and $100 for the second offense. The current text of state law regarding cell phone use (which prohibits people driving with learners’ permits from using a cell phone while driving, except in case of emergency) also said that nobody would be cited for a violation of the rule unless pulled over by a policeman for another violation. In Levy’s version, a driver can be pulled over for a violation of the new cell phone rules.

Although I hesitate to mention it because nanny-staters like Levy use it to argue for a complete ban on cell phone use in cars, at least one recent study suggests that driving while using a speakerphone or earpiece is no less dangerous than driving while holding a phone. This is because the problem isn’t that one’s hands are busy while talking; it’s because you’re distracted. If anything, one could argue that hands-free technology will make people stay on the phone longer and decrease overall traffic safety.

It’s absolutely typical of Democrats to “think with their hearts” (as Rep. Joyce Foster suggested legislators do regarding in-state tuition for illegal aliens). Studies suggest that Levy’s measure will do nothing to increase traffic safety, but it will make the lawyer-liberal-legislator feel as if she’s done something to protect us from ourselves. And of course, it will be a nice new revenue source for Colorado law enforcement agencies, distracting them further from doing things that are actually important and turning them into little more than tax collectors with guns.