BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                    AB 1785


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          ASSEMBLY THIRD READING


          AB  
          1785 (Quirk)


          As Amended  April 5, 2016


          Majority vote


           ------------------------------------------------------------------ 
          |Committee       |Votes|Ayes                  |Noes                |
          |                |     |                      |                    |
          |                |     |                      |                    |
          |                |     |                      |                    |
          |----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
          |Transportation  |11-1 |Frazier, Bloom,       |Melendez            |
          |                |     |Brown, Chu, Daly,     |                    |
          |                |     |Dodd, Eduardo Garcia, |                    |
          |                |     |Gomez, Medina,        |                    |
          |                |     |Nazarian, O'Donnell   |                    |
          |                |     |                      |                    |
          |----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
          |Appropriations  |14-6 |Gonzalez, Bloom,      |Bigelow, Chang,     |
          |                |     |Bonilla, Bonta,       |Gallagher, Jones,   |
          |                |     |Calderon, McCarty,    |Obernolte, Wagner   |
          |                |     |Eggman, Eduardo       |                    |
          |                |     |Garcia, Chau, Holden, |                    |
          |                |     |Quirk, Santiago,      |                    |
          |                |     |Weber, Wood           |                    |
          |                |     |                      |                    |
          |                |     |                      |                    |
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          SUMMARY:  Repeals and recasts the prohibition on the use of an  








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          electronic wireless communications device while driving.   
          Specifically, this bill:  


          1)Repeals the prohibition on driving a motor vehicle while using  
            an electronic wireless communications device to write, send,  
            or read a text-based communication, unless the electronic  
            wireless communications device is specifically designed and  
            configured to allow voice-operated and hands-free operation  
            and is used in that manner.


          2)Instead, prohibits a person from driving a motor vehicle while  
            using a wireless telephone or electronic wireless  
            communications device unless the device is specifically  
            designed for and used in a voice-operated and hands-free  
            manner.


          3)Provides that this prohibition does not apply to  
            factory-installed electronic wireless communications devices  
            located in a vehicle's dashboard, as specified.


          EXISTING LAW: 


          1)Prohibits a person from driving a motor vehicle while using an  
            electronic wireless communications device to write, send, or  
            read a text-based communication, unless the electronic  
            wireless communications device is specifically designed and  
            configured to allow voice-operated and hands-free operation  
            and is used in that manner.
          2)Provides that a person shall not be deemed to be writing,  
            reading, or sending a text-based communication if the person  
            reads, selects, or enters a telephone number or name in an  
            electronic wireless communications device for the purpose of  
            making or receiving a telephone call or if a person otherwise  
            activates or deactivates a feature or function on an  








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            electronic wireless communications device.


          FISCAL EFFECT:  According to the Assembly Appropriations  
          Committee, any costs to the California Highway Patrol to update  
          training regarding the modified prohibition on use of electronic  
          wireless communication devices would be minor and absorbable.


          COMMENTS:  Since 2006, California has prohibited driving a motor  
          vehicle while using a wireless telephone unless the device is  
          configured to allow for hands-free listening and talking.  In  
          2008, this ban expanded to prohibit a person from writing,  
          sending or reading text-based communications while driving [SB  
          28, (Simitian), Chapter 270, Statutes of 2008].  In 2013, the  
          Legislature again expanded this ban to prohibit anyone younger  
          than 18 years of age from operating a wireless communications  
          device while driving, regardless of the device's hands-free  
          capability [SB 194, (Galgiani), Chapter 754, Statutes of 2013].


          Despite the steady expansion of legislative prohibitions on the  
          use of wireless telephones and electronic wireless  
          communications devices while driving, and the clear dangers of  
          distracted driving, in 2014, the California Court of Appeals for  
          the 5th District ruled that the existing ban only prohibits a  
          driver from holding a wireless telephone while conversing on it.  
           In making its ruling, the court found that the legislative  
          intent in enacting those prohibitions was merely focused on  
          prohibiting a wireless telephone only while carrying on a  
          conversation, not while using it for any other purpose.  For  
          that reason, law enforcement agencies find it difficult, if not  
          practicably impossible to enforce the prohibition, as the scope  
          of a mobile device's functions and its contributions to  
          distracted driving go far beyond simply making and receiving  
          telephone calls.


          The current statutory ban on using a wireless telephone and  








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          writing, sending, or reading a text-based communication with an  
          electronic wireless communications device has been characterized  
          as being too narrow and not contemplating the full scope of  
          activities that can be carried out on a wireless telephone or  
          electronic wireless communications device.  Furthermore, the  
          distinction between a wireless telephone and an electronic  
          wireless communications device has grown increasingly blurred  
          and non-substantive, as a mobile device that an everyday  
          Californian might colloquially refer to as a "cell phone" indeed  
          resembles more of a miniaturized, pocket-sized personal computer  
          with telephone capabilities.  While a wireless telephone of 2006  
          might have the ability to make and receive phone calls, send  
          text messages, and perhaps offer limited internet access, a  
          smartphone of 2016 has vastly greater capabilities, ranging from  
          those legacy functions to global positioning, to video  
          streaming, to photography.  The existing statutory bans may have  
          been sufficient to capture the full range of capabilities of  
          wireless telephones at the time of enactment, but the language  
          of the bans has been found to be limited by the courts and  
          insufficient to capture the capabilities of today's devices.

          As the number of mobile devices and their range of capabilities  
          has grown, so too has their impact on driver safety on  
          California roads.  The California Department of Motor Vehicles  
          reported over 426,000 handheld cell phone and texting  
          convictions from jurisdictions statewide in 2013.  In 2015,  
          there were 12 fatal collisions involving handheld cellphone use  
          as an inattention factor, over 500 injury collisions, and nearly  
          700 property damage collisions.  That same year, the California  
          Highway Patrol alone issued over 13,000 citations for violating  
          the ban on writing, sending, or reading text-based  
          communications while driving, and 78,000 citations for using a  
          wireless telephone while driving.

          The author argues that the inconsistency of judicial  
          interpretation makes the law difficult to uphold by law  
          enforcement and difficult to follow to average citizens.  By  
          including functions of wireless telephones and electronic  
          wireless communications devices beyond just telephone calls,  








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          under the prohibition on their use while driving, the author  
          intends to give law enforcement additional tools to promote  
          driver safety.

          Please see the policy committee analysis for full discussion of  
          this bill.



          Analysis Prepared by:                                             
                          Justin Behrens / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093  FN:  
          0002962