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Los Alamos County adopts distracted-driving ordinance focused on handheld phone use
Summary
The County Council unanimously adopted an ordinance amending the traffic code to emphasize prohibition of handheld mobile device use while driving, with limited exemptions for mounted radios and hands-free systems.
Los Alamos County Council on May 6 adopted an ordinance tightening the county's distracted-driving rules to focus enforcement on handheld mobile device use while driving.
The measure, adopted 7-0, amends section 38-299 of the county code and repeals and replaces the prior distracted-driving language with a new section addressing handheld mobile communication devices. Councilors asked staff and the police chief for clarifications about exemptions and enforcement.
Police Chief Scambellone told the council the ordinance "is part of our overall safe traffic safety strategy" and that the change narrows enforcement toward phone-related distraction because evidence shows a large share of serious collisions are linked to phone use. He said the revised draft removes language that could have been read to ban mounted radio microphones used in police, bus, or construction vehicles.
During council questions Chief Scambellone said that a phone sitting on a console and used without being handled (for example, on speaker or connected by Bluetooth) would not, in his view, constitute a violation; but picking up a handheld device to answer or dial would. He also described a rebuttable statutory presumption: "An operator of a motor vehicle who holds a handheld mobile communication device to or in the immediate proximity of the operator's ear is presumed to be engaging in a call within the meaning of this section." He added that the presumption can be rebutted by evidence.
Councilor Reiting thanked staff for the redrafted language and said she hoped the ordinance's focus on phones would help messaging and enforcement. The council made no changes at adoption and asked staff to publish the ordinance in summary form.
The ordinance passed unanimously; the council recorded no abstentions or recusals. The county clerk will publish the ordinance summary as requested.
The new language emphasizes the phone-use risk while retaining broader distracted-driving concepts (eating, grooming, etc.) under the traffic code. The county's police department said enforcement practicalities could remain challenging in some cases but that the clearer focus will aid public education and compliance.
A copy of the ordinance text will be published by staff as provided in the county charter.
