II 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1938 

To establish a program to reduce injuries and deaths caused by cellphone 

use and texting while driving. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

OCTOBER 27, 2009 

Mr. ROCKEFELLER (for himself, Mrs. HUTCHISON, Mr. LAUTENBERG, Mr. 

SCHUMER, MR. THUNE, and Ms. KLOBUCHAR) introduced the following 

bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment 

and Public Works 

A BILL 

To establish a program to reduce injuries and deaths caused 

by cellphone use and texting while driving. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Distracted Driving Prevention Act of 2009’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Distracted driving incentive grants. 

Sec. 3. Distracted driving national education program. 

Sec. 4. Research and data collection. 

Sec. 5. Research program. 


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Sec. 6. FCC report on distracted driving technology. 

Sec. 7. Provision of information to States. 

Sec. 8. Commercial motor vehicles and school buses. 

Sec. 9. Funding. 

1 SEC. 2. DISTRACTED DRIVING INCENTIVE GRANTS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 4 of title 23, United 

3 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘§413. Distracted driving incentive grants 

6 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make a 

7 grant under this section to any State that enacts and im8 plements a statute that meets the requirements of sub9 sections (b) and (c) of this section. 

10 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITION ON TEXTING WHILE DRIVING.— 

11 A State statute meets the requirements of this subsection 

12 if the statute— 

13 ‘‘(1) prohibits the use of a personal wireless 

14 communications device by a driver for texting while 

15 driving; 

16 ‘‘(2) makes violation of the statute a primary 

17 offense; 

18 ‘‘(3) establishes— 

19 ‘‘(A) a minimum fine for a first violation 

20 of the statute; and 

21 ‘‘(B) increased fines for repeat violations; 

22 and 


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1 ‘‘(4) provides increased civil and criminal pen2 alties than would otherwise apply if a vehicle acci3 dent is caused by a driver who is using such a device 

4 in violation of the statute. 

5 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITION ON HANDHELD CELLPHONE USE

6 WHILE DRIVING.—A State statute meets the require7 ments of this subsection if the statute— 

8 ‘‘(1) prohibits a driver from holding a personal 

9 wireless communications device to conduct a tele10 phone call while driving; 

11 ‘‘(2) allows the use of hands-free devices that 

12 enable a driver, other than a driver who has not at13 tained the age of 18, to initiate, conduct, or receive 

14 a telephone call without holding the device; 

15 ‘‘(3) makes violation of the statute a primary 

16 offense; 

17 ‘‘(4) requires distracted driving issues to be 

18 tested as part of the State driver’s license examina19 tion; 

20 ‘‘(5) establishes— 

21 ‘‘(A) a minimum fine for a first violation 

22 of the statute; and 

23 ‘‘(B) increased fines for repeat violations; 

24 and 


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1 ‘‘(6) provides increased civil and criminal pen2 alties than would otherwise apply if a vehicle acci3 dent is caused by a driver who is using such a device 

4 in violation of the statute. 

5 ‘‘(d) PERMITTED EXCEPTIONS.—A statute that 

6 meets the requirements of subsections (b) and (c) may 

7 provide exceptions for— 

8 ‘‘(1) use of a personal wireless communications 

9 device by a driver to contact emergency services; 

10 ‘‘(2) manipulation of such a device by a driver 

11 to activate, deactivate, or initialize the hands-free 

12 functionality of the device; 

13 ‘‘(3) use of a personal wireless communications 

14 device by emergency services personnel while oper15 ating an emergency services vehicle and engaged in 

16 the performance of their duties as emergency serv17 ices personnel; and 

18 ‘‘(4) use of a device by an individual employed 

19 as a commercial motor vehicle driver, or a school bus 

20 driver, within the scope of such individual’s employ21 ment if such use is permitted under the regulations 

22 promulgated pursuant to section 31152 of title 49. 

23 ‘‘(e) GRANT YEAR.—The Secretary shall make a 

24 grant under this section to a State in any year in which 

25 the State— 


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1 ‘‘(1) enacts a law that meets the requirements 

2 of subsections (b) and (c) before July 1; or 

3 ‘‘(2) maintains a statute, that meets the re4 quirements of subsections (b) and (c), enacted in a 

5 previous year that is in effect through June 30th of 

6 the grant year. 

7 ‘‘(f) DISBURSEMENT AND APPORTIONMENT.—Grants 

8 to qualifying States shall be disbursed after July 1 each 

9 year according to the apportionment criteria of section 

10 402(c). 

11 ‘‘(g) USE OF GRANT FUNDS.—A State that receives 

12 a grant under this section— 

13 ‘‘(1) shall use at least 50 percent of the 

14 grant— 

15 ‘‘(A) to educate and advertise to the public 

16 information about the dangers of texting or 

17 using a cellphone while driving; 

18 ‘‘(B) for traffic signs that notify drivers 

19 about the distracted driving law of the State; 

20 ‘‘(C) for law enforcement of the distracted 

21 driving law; or 

22 ‘‘(D) for a combination of such uses; and 

23 ‘‘(2) may use up to 50 percent of the grant for 

24 other projects that improve traffic safety and that 

25 are consistent with the criteria in section 402(a). 


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1 ‘‘(h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

2 ‘‘(1) DRIVING.—The term ‘driving’ means oper3 ating a motor vehicle on a public road, including op4 eration while temporarily stationary because of traf5 fic, a traffic light or stop sign, or otherwise. It does 

6 not include operating a motor vehicle when the vehi7 cle has pulled over to the side of, or off, an active 

8 roadway and has stopped in a location where it can 

9 safely remain stationary. 

10 ‘‘(2) HANDS-FREE DEVICE.—The term ‘hands11 free device’ means a device that allows a driver to 

12 use a personal wireless communications device to ini13 tiate, conduct, or receive a telephone call without 

14 holding the personal wireless communications device. 

15 ‘‘(3) PERSONAL WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS

16 DEVICE.—The term ‘personal wireless communica17 tions device’ means a device through which personal 

18 wireless services (as defined in section 

19 332(c)(7)(C)(i) of the Communications Act of 1934 

20 (47 U.S.C. 332(c)(7)(C)(i))) are transmitted. It does 

21 not include a global navigation satellite system re22 ceiver used for positioning, emergency notification, 

23 or navigation purposes. 

24 ‘‘(4) PRIMARY OFFENSE.—The term ‘primary 

25 offense’ means an offense for which a law enforceVerDate Nov 24 2008 22:46 Oct 27, 2009 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1938.IS S1938

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1 ment officer may stop a vehicle solely for the pur2 pose of issuing a citation in the absence of evidence 

3 of another offense. 

4 ‘‘(5) PUBLIC ROAD.—The term ‘public road’ 

5 has the meaning given that term in section 402(c). 

6 ‘‘(6) TEXTING.—The term ‘texting’ means 

7 reading from or manually entering data into a per8 sonal wireless communications device, including 

9 doing so for the purpose of SMS texting, e-mailing, 

10 instant messaging, or engaging in any other form of 

11 electronic data retrieval or electronic data commu12 nication.’’. 

13 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con14 tents for chapter 4 of title 23, United States Code, is 

15 amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘413. Distracted driving incentive grants.’’. 

16 SEC. 3. DISTRACTED DRIVING NATIONAL EDUCATION PRO17 GRAM. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Na19 tional Highway Traffic Safety Administration shall estab20 lish and administer a program under which at least 2 

21 high-visibility education and advertising campaigns related 

22 to distracted driving will be carried out for the purpose 

23 specified in subsection (b) for fiscal years 2010 and 2011. 

24 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of an education and ad25 vertising campaign under this section shall be to educate 


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1 the public about the risks associated with distracted driv2 ing, including those associated with— 

3 (1) texting (as defined in section 413(h)(6) of 

4 title 23, United States Code) while driving; and 

5 (2) the use of personal wireless communications 

6 devices (as defined in section 413(h)(3) of that title) 

7 while driving. 

8 (c) ADVERTISING.—The Administrator may use, or 

9 authorize the use of, funds available to carry out this sec10 tion to pay for the development, production, publication, 

11 and broadcast of electronic and print media advertising 

12 in carrying out traffic safety education and advertising 

13 campaigns under this section. The Administrator— 

14 (1) shall give consideration to advertising di15 rected at non-English speaking populations, includ16 ing those who listen, read, or watch nontraditional 

17 media; and 

18 (2) may use a portion of the funds available for 

19 this program to target local jurisdictions that have 

20 enacted laws prohibiting texting or the use of per21 sonal wireless communications devices while driving. 

22 (d) COORDINATION WITH STATES.—The Adminis23 trator may coordinate with the States to carry out the 

24 education and advertising campaigns under this section to 

25 coincide with high-visibility enforcement of State laws proVerDate Nov 24 2008 22:46 Oct 27, 2009 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1938.IS S1938

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1 hibiting texting while driving or the use of personal wire2 less communications devices while driving. 

3 (e) ANNUAL EVALUATION.—The Administrator shall 

4 conduct an annual evaluation of the effectiveness of the 

5 education and advertising campaigns under this section, 

6 and report the results to the Senate Committee on Com7 merce, Science, and Transportation, and the House of 

8 Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce. 

9 SEC. 4. RESEARCH AND DATA COLLECTION. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 408(e)(2) of title 23, 

11 United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(2) DATA ON USE OF ELECTRONIC DEVICES.— 

13 ‘‘(A) The model data elements required 

14 under paragraph (1) shall include data ele15 ments, as determined appropriate by the Sec16 retary, in consultation with the States and ap17 propriate elements of the law enforcement com18 munity, on the impact on traffic safety of the 

19 use of electronic devices while driving. 

20 ‘‘(B) In order to meet the requirements of 

21 subparagraph (A), State and local governments 

22 shall— 

23 ‘‘(i) require that official vehicle acci24 dent investigation reports include a des25 ignated space to record whether or not the 


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1 use of a personal wireless communications 

2 device (as defined in section 413(h)(3)) 

3 was in use at the time of the accident by 

4 any driver involved in the accident; 

5 ‘‘(ii) require that all law enforcement 

6 officers, as part of a vehicle accident inves7 tigation, inquire about and record the in8 formation required by clause (i); and 

9 ‘‘(iii) incorporate the information col10 lected under clause (i) into its traffic safe11 ty information system.’’. 

12 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

13 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to grants under sec14 tion 408 of title 23, United States Code, for fiscal years 

15 beginning after fiscal year 2010. 

16 SEC. 5. RESEARCH PROGRAM. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transportation 

18 shall establish a research program to study distracted 

19 driving by passenger and commercial vehicle drivers. 

20 (b) SCOPE.—The program shall include studies of— 

21 (1) driver behavior; 

22 (2) vehicle technology; and 

23 (3) portable electronic devices that are com24 monly brought into passenger or commercial vehi25 cles. 


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1 (c) RESEARCH AGREEMENTS.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out this section 

3 the Secretary may grant research contracts to non4 governmental entities to study distracted driving. 

5 (2) LIMITATIONS.—The Secretary may not 

6 grant a research contract under this section to any 

7 person that produces or sells— 

8 (A) electronic equipment that is used in ve9 hicles; 

10 (B) portable electronic equipment com11 monly brought into passenger or commercial ve12 hicles; or 

13 (C) passenger or commercial vehicles. 

14 SEC. 6. FCC REPORT ON DISTRACTED DRIVING TECH15 NOLOGY. 

16 Within 180 days after the date of enactment of this 

17 Act, the Federal Communications Commission shall sub18 mit a report to the Senate Committee on Commerce, 

19 Science, and Transportation and the House of Represent20 atives Committee on Energy and Commerce that identi21 fies— 

22 (1) data the Commission can collect and ana23 lyze that will assist in understanding and reducing 

24 the problem of distracted driving involving the use of 

25 personal communications devices; 


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1 (2) existing and developing wireless communica2 tions technology that may be used to reduce prob3 lems associated with distracted driving; and 

4 (3) existing authority that the Commission may 

5 use to assist in reducing those problems. 

6 SEC. 7. PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO STATES. 

7 Section 30105 of title 49, United States Code, shall 

8 not apply to providing government-sponsored research and 

9 highway safety data, or providing technical assistance, re10 lating to legislative proposals addressing the dangers or 

11 potential dangers of— 

12 (1) texting while driving a passenger vehicle, 

13 school bus, or commercial vehicle; or 

14 (2) the use of personal wireless communications 

15 devices (as defined in section 413(h)(3) of title 23, 

16 United States Code) while driving a passenger vehi17 cle, school bus, or commercial vehicle. 

18 SEC. 8. COMMERCIAL MOTOR VEHICLES AND SCHOOL 

19 BUSES. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter III of chapter 311 of 

21 title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

22 end the following: 


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1 ‘‘§31152. Regulation of the use of distracting devices 

2 in commercial motor vehicles and school 

3 buses 

4 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—No later than 1 year after the 

5 enactment of the Distracted Driving Prevention Act of 

6 2009, the Secretary of Transportation shall prescribe reg7 ulations on the use of electronic or wireless devices, includ8 ing cell phones and other distracting devices, by an indi9 vidual employed as the operator of— 

10 ‘‘(1) a commercial motor vehicle while that indi11 vidual is engaged in the performance of such individ12 ual’s duties as the operator of the commercial motor 

13 vehicle; or 

14 ‘‘(2) a school bus (as defined in section 

15 30125(a)(1)) that is a commercial motor vehicle (as 

16 defined in section 31301(4)(A)) while that individual 

17 is engaged in the performance of such individual’s 

18 duties as the operator of the school bus. 

19 ‘‘(b) BASIS FOR REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall 

20 base the regulations required by subsection (a) on accident 

21 data analysis, the results of ongoing research, and other 

22 information, as appropriate. 

23 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITED USE.—The Secretary shall prohibit 

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1 er’s safe operation of a school bus or commercial motor 

2 vehicle. 

3 ‘‘(d) PERMITTED USE.—Under the regulations, the 

4 Secretary may permit the use of a device, the use of which 

5 is prohibited under subsection (c), if the Secretary deter6 mines that such use is necessary for the safety of the driv7 er or the public in emergency circumstances.’’. 

8 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con9 tents for chapter 311 of title 49, United States Code, is 

10 amended by inserting after the item relating to section 

11 31151 the following: 

‘‘31152. Regulation of the use of distracting devices in commercial motor vehicles and school buses.’’. 

12 SEC. 9. FUNDING. 

13 Section 2001(a) of Public Law 109–59 is amended— 

14 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ in paragraph (4); 

15 (2) by striking ‘‘2009.’’ in paragraph (4) and 

16 inserting ‘‘2009, $94,500,000 for fiscal year 2010, 

17 and $94,500,000 for fiscal year 2011. If any amount 

18 of the funds authorized by this paragraph has not 

19 been allocated to States meeting the criteria of sec20 tion 406 of title 23, United States Code, by July 1 

21 of a fiscal year beginning after fiscal year 2009, the 

22 unallocated amount shall be allocated to States 

23 meeting the criteria of section 413 of that title.’’; 

24 and 


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1 (3) by redesignating paragraph (11) as para2 graph (12) and inserting after paragraph (10) the 

3 following: 

4 ‘‘(11) DISTRACTED DRIVING PROGRAM.—For 

5 carrying out section 3 of the Distracted Driving Pre6 vention Act of 2009, $30,000,000 for each of fiscal 

7 years 2010 and 2011.’’. 

Æ 


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