Utah House makes texting while driving a primary offense, exempts emergency and tow vehicles

The Utah House on Feb. 25, 2009, approved first substitute House Bill 290 to prohibit use of handheld wireless communication devices for texting while driving by making it a primary careless‑driving offense and classifying violations as a class C misdemeanor. Sponsor Representative Stephen Clark framed the bill as a targeted safety measure, citing fatal crashes and campus research on distracted driving.

Clark described the measure as amending the careless‑driving statute to specifically designate texting with handheld devices as a primary offense and emphasized that drivers who pull safely to the side of the road would not be liable. He referenced recent local tragedies to underline the urgency: "Last year, we had a terrific, terrific tragedy ... 2 of our rocket scientists ... were killed while they were driving to work and a young teenage boy was texting ... killing both of these young fathers."

Floor discussion included safety endorsements and technical amendments. Representative Wiley moved Amendment No.1 to exempt tow vehicles, ambulances and certain code‑enforcement officers; the sponsor called it a friendly amendment and the body adopted it. Members asked about enforcement mechanics and whether texting would still be a single‑instance citation under careless‑driving code; the sponsor confirmed texting could be cited as a primary offense without requiring two separate traffic‑offense occurrences.

The House passed the first substitute HB290 by a recorded vote of 55 yes and 20 no; the bill will be transmitted to the Senate.

Next steps: the bill proceeds to the Senate for further consideration.