DeWine’s two-year budget proposal includes a plan to strengthen Ohio’s distracted driving laws by making it a primary offense and increasing fines for people who habitually use devices while driving. With just limited exceptions, drivers would be required to use hands-free technology if using their phones or other electronic devices.
Under current law, texting while driving is illegal but is a secondary offense for adults — meaning police must witness another violation to pull over the driver. It is a primary offense for minors.
Early data from the Ohio Highway Patrol shows 1,236 fatalities on Ohio roads in 2020. More than 100,000 distracted driving crashes have been recorded in Ohio since 2013, resulting in more than 53,000 injuries.
Ohio, Nebraska, Missouri and Montana are the only states without primary enforcement laws for adult drivers who text and drive.
DeWine tried unsuccessfully last year to get state lawmakers to strengthen Ohio’s distracted driving laws.
His new proposed Hands-Free Ohio legislation would prohibit several actions while driving, including:
- Watching or recording videos;
- Taking photos or looking at images;
- Live streaming;
- Using apps;
- Entering information into GPS navigation programs;
- Dialing phone numbers;
- Holding a device for a phone call.
A study from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that about 80 percent of drivers between the ages of 35 and 55 say it is unacceptable to text or email while driving. But 77 percent of survey participants also said they talk on the phone while driving and about 42 percent have read a text or email while driving in the past 30 days, according to AAA’s website.
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