The state House of Representatives voted 71-126 to reject the Senate’s amendments to a bill that would prohibit teen drivers from texting and talking on a cell phone without a hands-free device.
The bill had been watered down by the Senate to make it a secondary offense for junior drivers or drivers with a learner’s permit to text or talk on a cell phone while driving.
As originally written, House Bill 67 would have made it a primary offense for these young drivers to text or talk on a cell phone, meaning they could have been pulled over and cited just for that violation alone.
With a secondary offense, the driver would have to be pulled over for another violation before being cited for using a cell phone.
A conference committee with representatives from both chambers may be appointed to work out their differences.
The Pennsylvania Medical Society supports a ban on talking and texting on a handheld cell phone while driving. Several other bills are being considered by the General Assembly that would limit cell phone use while driving.