1.Short title; table of
contents
(a)This Act may be cited as the Distracted Driving Prevention Act of
2011
.
(b)The table of contents for this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Distracted driving prevention incentive
grants.
Sec. 3. Distracted driving national education
program.
Sec. 4. Research and data collection.
Sec. 5. Research program.
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.
2.Distracted
driving prevention incentive grants
(a)Chapter 4 of title 23, United States Code, is amended by
adding at the end the following:
413.Distracted
driving prevention incentive grants
(a)Subject to the
amounts made available to carry out this section, the Secretary shall make a
grant under this section each fiscal year to each State that enacts and
implements a law that meets the requirements of subsections (b) and (c).
(b)Prohibition on
Texting While DrivingA State law meets the requirements of this
subsection if the law—
(1)prohibits the use
of a personal wireless communications device by a driver for texting while
driving;
(2)makes violation of
the law a primary offense;
(3)establishes—
(A)a minimum fine for
a first violation of the law; and
(B)increased fines
for repeat violations; and
(4)provides increased
civil and criminal penalties, as compared to those that would otherwise apply,
if a vehicle accident is caused by a driver who is using such a device in
violation of the law.
(c)Prohibition on
Handheld Cell Phone Use While DrivingA State law meets the
requirements of this subsection if the law—
(1)prohibits a driver
from holding a personal wireless communications device to conduct a telephone
call while driving;
(2)allows the use of
a hands-free device by a driver, other than a driver who has not attained the
age of 18 years, for initiating, conducting, or receiving a telephone
call;
(3)makes violation of
the law a primary offense;
(4)requires
distracted driving issues to be tested as part of the driver’s license
examination of the State;
(5)establishes—
(A)a minimum fine for
a first violation of the law; and
(B)increased fines
for repeat violations; and
(6)provides increased civil and criminal
penalties, as compared to those that would otherwise apply, if a vehicle
accident is caused by a driver who is using a personal wireless communications
device in violation of the law.
(d)A State law meets the requirements of subsections (b)
and (c) without regard to whether the law provides exceptions for—
(1)use of a personal
wireless communications device by a driver to contact emergency
services;
(2)manipulation of a
personal wireless communications device by a driver to activate, deactivate, or
initialize the hands-free functionality of the device;
(3)use of a personal
wireless communications device by emergency services personnel while operating
an emergency services vehicle and engaged in the performance of the duties of
emergency services personnel; and
(4)use of a device by
an individual employed as a commercial motor vehicle driver or a school bus
driver within the scope of such individual’s employment, if such use is
permitted under the regulations issued pursuant to section 31152 of title
49.
(e)The Secretary shall make a grant under this section to a
State in each year in which the State—
(1)enacts a law that
meets the requirements of subsections (b) and (c) before July 1 of that year;
or
(2)maintains a law
that—
(A)meets the
requirements of subsections (b) and (c);
(B)was enacted prior
to that year; and
(C)is in effect at
least from January 1 through June 30 of that year.
(f)Disbursement and
ApportionmentGrants to States under this section shall be
disbursed after July 1 each year according to the apportionment criteria under
section 402(c).
(g)A State that receives a grant under this section—
(1)shall use at least
50 percent of the grant amount—
(A)to educate the
public regarding and advertise information on the dangers of a driver using a
personal wireless communications device for texting or conducting a telephone
call that requires holding the device while driving;
(B)for signs that
notify drivers about the law of the State that made the State eligible for the
grant;
(C)for law
enforcement of that law; or
(D)for a combination
of such uses; and
(2)may use up to 50
percent of the grant amount for other projects that improve traffic safety and
that are consistent with the programs specified in section 402(a).
(h)In
this section, the following definitions apply:
(1)The
term driving means operating a motor vehicle on a public road,
including operation while temporarily stationary because of traffic, a traffic
light, a stop sign, or another reason. The term does not include operating a
motor vehicle when the vehicle has pulled over to the side of, or off, an
active roadway and has stopped in a location where it can safely remain
stationary.
(2)The term hands-free device means a device
that allows a driver to use a personal wireless communications device to
initiate, conduct, or receive a telephone call without holding the personal
wireless communications device.
(3)Personal
wireless communications deviceThe term personal wireless
communications device means a device through which personal wireless
services (as defined in section 332(c)(7)(C)(i) of the
Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C.
332(c)(7)(C)(i))) are transmitted. The term does not include a global
navigation satellite system receiver used for positioning, emergency
notification, or navigation purposes.
(4)The term primary offense means an offense
for which a law enforcement officer may stop a vehicle solely for the purpose
of issuing a citation in the absence of evidence of another offense.
(5)The term public road has the meaning given that
term in section 402(c).
(6)The
term texting means reading from or manually entering data into a
personal wireless communications device, including doing so for the purpose of
SMS texting, e-mailing, instant messaging, or engaging in any other form of
electronic data retrieval or electronic data
communication.
.
(b)The analysis for chapter 4 of title 23, United States
Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
413. Distracted driving prevention
incentive
grants.
.
3.Distracted
driving national education program
(a)The Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration shall establish and administer a program under which at least 2
high-visibility education and advertising campaigns related to distracted
driving will be carried out for the purpose specified in subsection (b) during
fiscal years 2012 and 2013.
(b)The
purpose of an education and advertising campaign under this section shall be to
educate the public about the risks associated with distracted driving,
including those associated with—
(1)a
driver using a personal wireless communications device for texting while
driving; and
(2)a driver holding a personal wireless
communications device to conduct a telephone call while driving.
(c)The Administrator may use, or authorize the use of, funds
made available to carry out this section to pay for the development,
production, publication, and broadcast of electronic and print media
advertising. In carrying out campaigns under this section, the
Administrator—
(1)shall give
consideration to advertising directed at non-English speaking populations,
including those who listen to, read, or watch nontraditional media; and
(2)may use a portion
of the funds available to target advertising in local jurisdictions that have
enacted laws prohibiting the use of personal wireless communications devices
for texting or conducting a telephone call that requires holding the device
while driving.
(d)The Administrator may coordinate with States to carry
out the education and advertising campaigns under this section in a manner that
coincides with high-visibility enforcement of State laws prohibiting the use of
personal wireless communications devices for texting or conducting a telephone
call that requires holding the device while driving.
(e)The Administrator shall conduct an annual evaluation
of the effectiveness of the education and advertising campaigns under this
section and report the results of such evaluations to the Committee on
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, the Committee on Energy
and Commerce of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives.
(f)The
definitions in section 413(h) of title 23, United States Code, apply to this
section.
4.Research and data
collection
(a)Section 408(e)(2) of title 23, United States Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(2)Data on use of
electronic devices
(A)The model data elements required under paragraph (1)
shall include data elements, as determined appropriate by the Secretary, in
consultation with the States and appropriate elements of the law enforcement
community, on the impact on traffic safety of the use of electronic devices
while driving.
(B)In
order to meet the requirements of subparagraph (A), State and local governments
shall—
(i)require that
official vehicle accident investigation reports include a designated space to
record information on whether or not a personal wireless communications device
(as defined in section 413(h)(3)) was in use at the time of an accident by any
driver involved in the accident;
(ii)require that all
law enforcement officers, as part of a vehicle accident investigation, inquire
about and record the information described in clause (i); and
(iii)incorporate the
information described in clause (i) into the traffic safety information
system.
.
(b)The amendment made by subsection (a) shall apply with
respect to grants under section 408 of title 23, United States Code, for fiscal
years beginning after fiscal year 2011.
5.
(a)Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall establish a research program to
study distracted driving by passenger and commercial vehicle drivers.
(b)The
program shall include studies of—
(1)driver
behavior;
(2)vehicle
technology; and
(3)portable
electronic devices that are commonly brought into passenger or commercial
vehicles.
(c)
(1)In carrying out this section the Secretary may grant
research contracts to non-governmental entities to study distracted
driving.
(2)The
Secretary may not grant a research contract under this section to any person
that produces or sells—
(A)electronic
equipment that is used in vehicles;
(B)portable
electronic equipment commonly brought into passenger or commercial vehicles;
or
(C)passenger or
commercial vehicles.
(d)Not later than one year after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation of the Senate, the Committee on Energy and Commerce
of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure of the House of Representatives a report on the results of the
research program under this section.
6.FCC report on
distracted driving technologyNot later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Federal Communications Commission shall submit to
the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the
Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives a report that
identifies—
(1)data the
Commission can collect and analyze that will assist in understanding and
reducing the problem of distracted driving involving the use of personal
wireless communications devices;
(2)existing and
developing wireless communications technology that may be used to reduce
problems associated with distracted driving; and
(3)existing authority
that the Commission may use to assist in reducing those problems.
7.Provision of
information to StatesSection
30105 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the
following:
(c)Subsection (a) shall not apply to the
provision of Government-sponsored research and highway safety data or technical
assistance relating to a legislative proposal addressing the dangers or
potential dangers of—
(1)a driver using a personal wireless
communications device (as defined in section 413(h)(3) of title 23) for texting
while driving; or
(2)a driver holding a personal wireless
communications device (as defined in section 413(h)(3) of title 23) to conduct
a telephone call while
driving.
.
8.Commercial motor
vehicles and school buses
(a)Subchapter III of chapter 311 of title 49, United States
Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
31152.Regulation of
the use of distracting devices in commercial motor vehicles and school
buses
(a)Not later than one year after the date of enactment of
the Distracted Driving Prevention Act of
2011, the Secretary of Transportation shall issue regulations on
the use of electronic or wireless devices, including cell phones and other
distracting devices, by an individual employed as the operator of—
(1)a commercial motor vehicle (as defined in
section 31301(4)) while that individual is engaged in the performance of such
individual’s duties as the operator of the commercial motor vehicle; or
(2)a school bus (as
defined in section 30125(a)(1)) that is a commercial motor vehicle (as defined
in section 31301(4)) while that individual is engaged in the performance of
such individual’s duties as the operator of the school bus.
(b)The Secretary shall base the regulations required
under subsection (a) on accident data analysis, the results of ongoing
research, and other information, as appropriate.
(c)The Secretary shall prohibit the use of the devices described
in subsection (a) in circumstances in which the Secretary determines that such
use interferes with a driver’s safe operation of a school bus or commercial
motor vehicle.
(d)Under the regulations, the Secretary may permit the use of a
device, the use of which is prohibited under subsection (c), if the Secretary
determines that such use is necessary for the safety of the driver or the
public in emergency
circumstances.
.
(b)The analysis for chapter 311 of title 49, United States
Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 31151 the
following:
31152. Regulation of the use of
distracting devices in commercial motor vehicles and school
buses.
.
9.Section 2001(a) of SAFETEA–LU is
amended—
(1)in paragraph
(4)—
(A)by striking
and $124,500,000
and inserting $124,500,000
;
and
(B)by striking
2011.
and inserting 2011, $94,500,000 for fiscal year
2012, and $94,500,000 for fiscal year 2013. If any amount of the funds
authorized by this paragraph has not been allocated to States meeting the
criteria of section 406 of title 23, United States Code, by July 1 of a fiscal
year beginning after fiscal year 2011, the unallocated amount shall be
allocated to States through grants under section 413 of that title.
;
and
(2)by redesignating
paragraph (11) as paragraph (12) and inserting after paragraph (10) the
following:
(11)Distracted
driving programFor carrying out section 3 of the
Distracted Driving Prevention Act of
2011 $30,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2012 and
2013.
.