In The News: Go Back to Drawing Board with Bills Restricting Cell Phone use

Texans as a general rule don't like the government telling them what they can and can't do, even if it may be for their own good.

Latest case in point: State lawmakers are trying to push through an assortment of bills banning Texans from talking on their cell phones while they're driving.

For starters, they're targeting teenagers, which may make senses, but equal attention should be focused on adult drivers as well.

Unfortunately, limiting cell phone use by teens appears to be as far as the Texas Legislature is willing to go this session. The scattershot approach to the issue may be part of the problem with getting legislation approved. There are proposals to:

-Prohibit only teens from talking on their cell phones while driving;

- Ban the use of cell phones only in school zones;

- Make it illegal for all people to talk on the phone while driving on any Texas road.

"People seem to forget driving on the roads of the state of Texas is privilege, not a right," said Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, D-San Antonio. "Talking on the cell phone and text messaging while driving are probably two things we shouldn't encourage people to do in the state and it is unfortunate we can't have that debate on the House floor."

His point is well-taken, considering the results of a study conducted by the Center for Risk Studies at Harvard University. It showed 6 percent of motor vehicle accidents are caused by people driving while using a wireless phone. That's the equivalent of 2,600 deaths and 12,000 injuries a year.

The Harvard study explains why the National Safety Council, which was chartered by Congress, is recommending states ban cell phones while driving - even hand-free phones.

Talking on a cell phone while driving isn't the only serious distraction you can see in Lubbock every day.

Motorists are risking injury to themselves or others by listening to music too loud, applying makeup, eating food, and juggling a cup of hot coffee or a cold soda.

Texting while behind the wheel, however, leads the list of preventable hazards as it demands more concentration than any of the others.

"What are you going to do with other distractions?" asks Joe Pickett Pickett, D-El Paso, chairman of the House Transportation Committee, the 11-member panel assigned to screen such legislation.

It's clear to us state lawmakers need to go back to the drawing board on this matter for more discussion, debate, and resolution - even if it's not during this session, which ends June 1.

There's some good ideas here, but they're scattered in so many different bills it's impossible to predict if their effect would be meaningful if approved.

Something needs to be done to address the problem, not only with teens but with all drivers - whether it's now or when the next session convenes in 2011. We're still a long way from where we need to be in terms of public safety on the highways.