Pima County is now the third local jurisdiction to prohibit the use of cellphones and other electronic devices without hands-free technology.
With a 3-2 vote Tuesday morning, the county joined the city of Tucson and Oro Valley in restricting all uses of such devices, with only a handful of exemptions. The county's new law goes into effect June 1.
Like Oro Valley, the supervisors made violations of the law a primary offense, meaning sheriff’s deputies would not need to first observe another violation to pull drivers over. While similar in other ways, Tucson’s ordinance is a secondary offense.
The ordinance amends another county ordinance — approved unanimously by the supervisors a year ago — that also prohibited texting, though it had exemptions that some officials say make it hard to enforce.
The two no votes came from supervisors Steve Christy and Ramón Valadez. Christy, while emphasizing he agrees that distracted driving is a serious public health issue, said more information about different local rules about it, among other things, was necessary to make an “informed decision.”
Mark Spear, one of a handful of people to speak against the ordinance, raised similar concerns.
Valadez was concerned that enforcement of the ordinance could fall disproportionately on poorer county residents who may not be able to afford hands-free technology.
Before voting, the supervisors heard from a number of speakers, all but a handful of who spoke in favor of the ordinance. Two of the speakers, Arlene Ozburn and Karen Wilson, shared stories of losing adult children in local distracted driving-related crashes. Both asked that the ordinance be enforced as a primary offense.
“If it doesn’t have teeth, why pass it?” Ozburn, whose daughter Barbara Applebaum died last fall after an April 2016 collision, said.
Tucson ban
The city's ordinance went into effect Monday, May 1. The mayor and Tucson City Council voted in March to make violation of the ban a secondary offense, meaning an officer has to pull you over for another reason before you can be cited for using a hand-held device.
The city's new violation is classified as a civil traffic matter, starting with a $250 fine for a first non-accident offense, and subsequent offenses are $500. For violations involving a traffic accident, there will be a penalty of $500.
The city will review the ordinance in six months.
Put the Phone Down from City of Tucson on Vimeo.
