Legislature considers bills to make motorists hang up and drive.

Byline: David Steves The Register-Guard

SALEM - Russ Rudometkin, until last year a social worker and a triathlete, relied on his daughter to urge lawmakers to restrict cell phone use while driving.

Rudometkin's life-altering injuries at the hand of an 18-year-old driver who was talking on his cell phone left him unable to make the trip to the Capitol from his Medford home. It also left him with a brain injury and numerous physical ailments.

"Nothing that driver was talking about on the cell phone was worth my dad's life or the pain this tragedy has caused him and my family," Rachel Rudometkin told the House Transportation Committee after describing how her father was struck head-on while riding his bicycle near his Medford home. She said Rudometkin is no longer able to work or participate in triathlons.

The Salem woman was one of several who said Oregonians would be safer if the Legislature were to pass bills cracking down on cell phone use while driving. The issue was considered earlier in the Senate, where it has stalled. On Monday, it was the House's turn.

The panel took testimony on four cell phone-related bills, two of which focused on younger drivers and two of which would limit cell phone use for drivers of all ages.

Committee Chairwoman Rep. Terry Beyer, D-Springfield, said she would need to consult with other committee members before deciding whether to pursue any of the bills. She said it made most sense to her to consider limits on young, less-experienced drivers' use of cell phones to chat or send and receive text messages.

"Maybe we can teach some better driving habits then," she said.

In 2005, 234 car crashes reportedly involved cell phone use - less than 1 percent of the 44,878 total crashes that year, said Troy Costales of the Oregon Department of Transportation. In that same year, cell phones were used in 139 of the 19,446 accidents involving injuries and five of the 488 crash-related fatalities.

Steve Buckstein, senior policy analyst with the Cascade Policy Institute, a libertarian think tank in Portland, encouraged lawmakers to weigh the benefits of cell phone use against the risks involved, just as they do with the larger questions of motor-vehicle safety.

"The biggest killer on our highways is not cell phones but the motor vehicle itself," he said. "But I don't think anybody is talking seriously about banning motor vehicles."

All four of the bills include exemptions for using hand-held phones while driving an ambulance or emergency vehicle or summoning medical or other emergency help. A proposed amendment would include two-way radios such as CBs under the exemption.

Four other states ban hand-held cell phone use by drivers.

According to Stateline.org, which monitors legislative action nationwide, 12 legislatures are considering whether to adopt such bans, joining California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York and Washington, D.C. In addition, at least three states are considering restricting sending text messages by motorists.

Several states have focused such restrictions on younger, inexperienced drivers. Thirteen states ban any cell phone use by teens or those with learner's permits or intermediate licenses.

Washington's House and Senate last week approved a ban on using a hand-held cell phone. The state's governor has said she would sign it into law. The Washington Legislature also is considering a ban on sending text messages while driving, which the Senate has approved.

CELL PHONE CRACKDOWN 

The House Transportation Committee is considering four bills limiting cell phone use by drivers:

House Bill 2482: Bans use of a hand-held mobile device while driving. Maximum $90 fine.

House Bill 2872: Bans driving while using a hand-held mobile phone. Maximum $360 fine.

House Bill 2873: Bans mobile communication device use by driver younger than 21. Maximum $90 fine.

House Bill 3189: Bans the use of a hand-held mobile communication device for drivers younger than 18. Maximum $90 fine.