Senate Bill No. 137
(By Senators Guills and Foster)
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[Introduced January 9, 2008; referred to the committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure; and then to the Committee on
the Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by
adding thereto a new section, designated §17C-14-3, relating
to prohibiting use of a handheld cell phone while driving;
providing exceptions; providing a penalty for violations; and
providing that points may not be assessed against driver's
license for a violation.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended
by adding thereto a new section, designated §17C-14-3, to read as
follows:
ARTICLE 14. MISCELLANEOUS RULES.
§17C-14-3. Use of cellular telephone while driving prohibited;
penalty; no points may be assessed.
(a) A person may not operate a motor vehicle while using a handheld cellular telephone or similar device requiring the motor
vehicle operator to hold the cellular telephone in one of his or her
hands while driving. The provisions of this section do not apply
to a driver of a motor vehicle who uses a cellular telephone with
a headset or a cellular telephone with a speaker system which does
not require the driver to hold the cellular telephone in his or her
hands while driving.
(b) Any person violating the provisions of this section is
guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined
not more than one hundred dollars; upon a second conviction within
one year thereafter, shall be fined not more than two hundred
dollars; and upon a third or subsequent conviction, shall be fined
not more than five hundred dollars.
(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the
contrary, no points may be entered on any driver's record maintained
by the West Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles as a result of a
violation of this section.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to prohibit the use of
handheld cellular telephones while driving and to provide a penalty
for violations. Under the bill, a person may be fined for a
violation, but no points may be assessed against his or her driver's
license.
This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.