PHOENIX — Come Sunday morning, Arizona will no longer be one of two states with no restrictions on motorists’ use of cellphones while driving.
But just barely.
The state’s new law, taking effect July 1, applies only to teens with a learner’s permit or those who are within the first six months of being allowed to drive.
And police will be prohibited from citing those drivers solely because they are seen texting or talking on their phones. Motorists can be ticketed for cellphone use only if they are stopped for some other reason, like speeding.
Penalties start at $75 for a first offense. A third offense is a $100 fine and loss of license for 30 days.
There are exceptions allowing drivers to call or text during an emergency “in which stopping the motor vehicle is impossible or will create an additional emergency or safety hazard.”
Also, teen drivers will be allowed to use a phone’s turn-by-turn navigation system — but only if they enter the location before they start driving and don’t adjust it while behind the wheel.
Still, the legislation, approved more than a year ago, is the state’s first tentative step to setting some statewide limits.
More to the point, it was approved by lawmakers pretty much because of how little it did — and how few people it affected.
It leaves Montana as the only state with absolutely no restrictions on cellphone use while driving.
Several communities, including Tucson, Oro Valley and Pima County, already have their own bans — for drivers of all ages — against use of electronic devices without hands-free set-ups. Those remain in effect and are stricter than the new state law.
Arizona lawmakers tried for years to adopt some sort of statewide restrictions. But proposals for broader laws failed amid complaints by some lawmakers, ranging from whether existing laws on distracted driving already cover the issue, to concerns about creating a “nanny state” environment with the government telling people what’s good for them.
Supporters of the narrow new law pointed out there already are special restrictions on new drivers, including limiting the number of unrelated teens who can be in the vehicle.
