Broward County Commission Regular Meeting

MOTION TO ADOPT Resolution No. 2017-418 supporting efforts for the Florida Legislature to enact legislation making texting while driving a primary offense, the title of which is as follows: (Mayor Sharief and Commissioner LaMarca)
 
A RESOLUTION OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF BROWARD COUNTY, FLORIDA, URGING THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE TO ENACT LEGISLATION MAKING TEXTING WHILE DRIVING A PRIMARY OFFENSE; AND PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE.

(Per the Tuesday Morning Memorandum, Commissioner Udine and Vice Mayor Furr requested being co-sponsors to this item.)

ACTION:  (T-10:42 AM)  Approved, as amended, supporting the doubling of fines for violations committed in school zones.  (Commissioners Bogen, Geller, Holness and Rich requested to be added as co-sponsors to this item.  Through Mayor Sharief, Commissioner Ryan was added as a co-sponsor to this item.) (Refer to minutes for full discussion.) (See Yellow-Sheeted Additional Material, dated Tuesday, August 22, 2017, submitted at the request of Vice Mayor Furr.)
 
VOTE: 9-0.

Board action is required to approve resolutions.

Supports efforts for the Florida Legislature to enact legislation to make texting while driving a primary offense.

Texting while driving is a proven distraction and makes the likelihood of a crash 23 times greater than driving when not distracted. Florida is among the five states that consider texting while driving as a secondary offense for which a law enforcement officer can issue a ticket only if a driver has been pulled over for committing another traffic violation. This resolution would support legislation to make texting while driving a primary offense in Florida, thereby granting law enforcement the authority to issue a ticket regardless of whether another traffic violation has occurred. Miami-Dade County has adopted a similar resolution.