Hands-Free Driving Bill Heads to Governor

(IIB Photo/Alex Brown)

A bill aimed to curb distracted driving on Indiana roads is expected to be signed into law by Governor Eric Holcomb. House Bill 1070, which received overwhelming support in both the House and Senate, would make Indiana the 22nd state to require hands-free use of a cell phone while driving.

The governor made the creation of a hands-free driving law part of his 2020 legislative priorities. The bill pass the House by a vote of 81-11 and the Senate by a vote of 49-1.

Once signed by Holcomb, the law will go into effect on July 1, at which point drivers could receive a ticket for using their phone while driving. However, the bill mandates that putting points on your license be delayed until July 2021.

“That allows the General Assembly and/or the points study committee then to come back and decide what the point values – if any – should be for illegal use of cell phone use while driving,” State Rep. Holli Sullivan (R-Evansville) told our partners at WFYI. 

A potential time frame for the governor to sign the bill is not known.