Families Plead For Hands-Free Driving Bill Resolution As Holidays Approach

STATEHOUSE, BOSTON, Oct. 29, 2019 (State House News Service) -- Families affected by distracted-driving crashes renewed their calls Tuesday for legislators to reach a compromise on stalled legislation, warning that the upcoming two-month stretch will see the busiest travel conditions of the year.

More than a month after they held a press conference to criticize the lack of progress on the bill's closed-door negotiations, the Safe Roads Alliance and TextLess Live More asked lawmakers to "show courage and spirit of compromise" to resolve a dispute over data-collection language that has stalled the hands-free legislation.

"Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years are approaching — the busiest travel season of the year — and legislative action has gone stone cold on Hands-Free," Emily Stein, president of the Safe Roads Alliance, said in a press release. "We have waited a month since our last press conference. Where is the bill?"

Lawmakers have not been able to send a bill banning handheld device use behind the wheel to Gov. Charlie Baker despite near-unanimous support in the Legislature. A conference committee has been negotiating differences between the House and Senate version since June 19.

Civil rights groups last week asked conferees to keep the Senate's language to monitor traffic stops for potential racial profiling and not to adopt the House's version, which would collect less data and would not require it to be published.