| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to certain prohibited activities in motor |
| 3 | vehicles; prohibiting reading, writing, or the use of |
| 4 | wireless communications devices while operating a motor |
| 5 | vehicle; providing exceptions; providing a penalty; |
| 6 | providing an effective date. |
| 7 |
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| 8 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 9 |
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| 10 | Section 1. Cellular telephones.-- |
| 11 | (1) Except as provided in subsection (2), a person may not |
| 12 | operate a motor vehicle on the highways of this state while |
| 13 | reading, manually writing, or sending a text message on a |
| 14 | wireless communications device. |
| 15 | (2) Subsection (1) does not apply to a person operating: |
| 16 | (a) An authorized emergency vehicle; or |
| 17 | (b) A moving motor vehicle while using an electronic |
| 18 | wireless communications device to: |
| 19 | 1. Report illegal activities; |
| 20 | 2. Summon medical or other emergency help; or |
| 21 | 3. Prevent injury or damage to a person or property. |
| 22 | (3) Any person who violates subsection (1) commits a |
| 23 | noncriminal moving traffic violation and shall pay a fine of |
| 24 | $100 for the first offense, $250 for the second offense, and |
| 25 | $500 for the third offense. |
| 26 | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2009. |