As the fall legislative season gets into full gear on Beacon Hill, Massachusetts lawmakers will turn their attention to distracted driving Tuesday and begin a debate on whether or not to ban handheld phones from the driver’s seat.
The Transportation Committee will hear several bills on distracted driving - including legislation that would require only hands-free devices for drivers behind the wheel in Massachusetts.
House Speaker Robert DeLeo says he wants to listen to the pros and cons of a handheld cell phone ban for drivers similar to those in effect in fourteen other states - and Gov. Charlie Baker wants law enforcement officials to inform any new laws.
“I would certainly be interested in seeing where the conversation on this goes. The technology on this stuff has gotten a lot more sophisticated than it was five years or so ago when it was last discusses here. But I’d be inclined to see where the Legislature moves on the specifics of this before I would take a position.”
Also on lawmakers’ agenda for the next weeks are votes to stiffen penalties for trafficking the drug fentanyl and reforms to the public records law.
