Is this the year Louisiana makes it illegal to handle a phone while behind the wheel? The push for lower insurance rates may get the bill over the hump.
It has long been illegal in Louisiana to text while driving... the problem is, the law specifically bans only texting. Covington Republican Pat McMath told his fellow state senators that it makes the law unenforceable.
"That person can turn around and say, 'I was watching a movie' or 'I was on my social media,' and that’s currently not against the law.
McMath's bill would forbid drivers from handling a phone at all.
He says in the 30 or so states that have passed similar bans, car crashes and auto insurance rates have dropped.
"Thirty-some-odd states that this has been passed in...it reduces the amount of accidents, which reduces the amount of claims, which reduces premiums," McMath said.
The state senate voted 33-5 for the bill. The measure heads back to the House for approval of Senate amendments, and then it will head to the governor’s des,k and Jeff Landry is expected to sign it.
