HB 874

            
2020 SESSION


20106899D

HOUSE BILL NO. 874

AMENDMENT IN THE NATURE OF A SUBSTITUTE

(Proposed by the House Committee on Transportation

on January 30, 2020)

(Patrons Prior to Substitute--Delegates Bourne, Bulova [HB
512], Edmunds [HB 387], Ware [HB 1672], and Willett [HB 377])

A BILL to amend and reenact � 46.2-1078.1 of the Code of
Virginia, relating to holding handheld personal communications devices while
driving a motor vehicle.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That � 46.2-1078.1 of the Code of Virginia is amended and
reenacted as follows:

� 46.2-1078.1. Use of handheld personal communications devices
in certain motor vehicles; exceptions; penalty.

A. It is unlawful for any person to operate, while
driving a moving motor vehicle on the highways in the Commonwealth while
using any, to hold a handheld personal communications device to:

1. Manually enter multiple letters or text in the device as
a means of communicating with another person; or

2. Read any email or text message transmitted to the device
or stored within the device, provided that this prohibition shall not apply to
any name or number stored within the device nor to any caller identification
information.

B. It is unlawful for any person while driving a moving
motor vehicle in a highway work zone to hold in his hand a handheld personal
communications device.

C. The provisions of this section shall not apply to:

1. The operator of any emergency vehicle while he is engaged
in the performance of his official duties;

2. An operator who is lawfully parked or stopped;

3. The use of factory-installed or aftermarket global
positioning systems (GPS) or wireless communications devices used to transmit
or receive data as part of a digital dispatch system; or

4. Any person using a handheld personal communications
device to report an emergency;

4. The use of an amateur or a citizens band radio; or

5. The operator of any Department of Transportation vehicle
or vehicle operated pursuant to the Department of Transportation safety service
patrol program or pursuant to a contract with the Department of Transportation
for, or that includes, traffic incident management services as defined in
subsection B of � 46.2-920.1 during the performance of traffic incident
management services.

D. C. A violation of subsection A this
section is a traffic infraction punishable, for a first offense, by a fine
of $125 and, for a second or subsequent offense, by a fine of $250. A
If a violation of subsection B is this section occurs in a
highway work zone, it shall be punishable by a mandatory fine of $250.

E. D. For the purposes of this section:

"Emergency vehicle" means:

1. Any law-enforcement vehicle operated by or under the
direction of a federal, state, or local law-enforcement officer while
engaged in the performance of official duties;

2. Any regional detention center vehicle operated by or under
the direction of a correctional officer responding to an emergency call or
operating in an emergency situation;

3. Any vehicle used to fight fire, including publicly owned state
forest warden vehicles, when traveling in response to a fire alarm or emergency
call;

4. Any emergency medical services vehicle designed or used for
the principal purpose of supplying resuscitation or emergency medical
services relief where human life is endangered;

5. Any Department of Emergency Management vehicle or Office of
Emergency Medical Services vehicle, when responding to an emergency call or
operating in an emergency situation;

6. Any Department of Corrections vehicle designated by the
Director of the Department of Corrections, when (i) responding to an emergency
call at a correctional facility, (ii) participating in a drug-related
investigation, (iii) pursuing escapees from a correctional facility, or (iv)
responding to a request for assistance from a law-enforcement officer; and

7. Any vehicle authorized to be equipped with alternating,
blinking, or flashing red or red and white secondary warning lights pursuant to
� 46.2-1029.2.

"Highway work zone" means a construction or
maintenance area that is located on or beside a highway and is marked by
appropriate warning signs with attached flashing lights or other traffic
control devices indicating that work is in progress.

F. E. Distracted driving shall be included as a
part of the drivers license knowledge examination.

2. That the provisions of this act shall become effective on
January 1, 2021.

3. That the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police and
DRIVE SMART Virginia shall create training and educational materials on the
implementation and enforcement of this act to be made available to
law-enforcement agencies.

4. That DRIVE SMART Virginia and other traffic safety
organizations shall develop and provide educational materials to the public
regarding the provisions of this act prior to its effective date.

5. That the Chairmen of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary
and the House Committee for Courts of Justice shall annually request the Office
of the Executive Secretary to report all of the citations issued pursuant to
the provisions of this act and, to the extent available, the relevant
demographic characteristics of those persons issued a citation.