(Des Moines, IA) — There’s another push in the Iowa Legislature to make it illegal for drivers to use hand-held phones while behind the wheel. A 2017 law makes texting while driving illegal, but Iowans can still hold their phones to make calls and check navigation apps. Sarah Jennings of the Iowa Department of Public Safety says, “we have to get phones out of the hands of drivers. It’s become a scourge on our roads and it’s a lethal one.” Twenty-five other states have hands-free driving laws. Nationwide Insurance lobbyist Matthew McKinney says passage of those laws result in an immediate decrease in fatalities. Major Mark Stein of the Iowa State Patrol says last year there were 373 crashes in Iowa where the driver was distracted by an electronic device. A House committee and a Senate subcommittee have approved bills to ban handheld cell phone use while driving in Iowa.
