Bill Text: NJ AJR31 | 2014-2015 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Designates October 2012 as "Distracted Driver Education and Awareness Month."
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-01-16 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Law and Public Safety Committee [AJR31 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2014-AJR31-Introduced.html
No. 31
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
216th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2014 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman SHAVONDA E. SUMTER
District 35 (Bergen and Passaic)
Assemblyman BENJIE E. WIMBERLY
District 35 (Bergen and Passaic)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman Jimenez, Assemblyman Diegnan and Assemblywoman Mosquera
SYNOPSIS
Designates October 2012 as "Distracted Driver Education and Awareness Month."
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
A Joint Resolution designating October 2012 as "Distracted Driver Education and Awareness Month" in New Jersey.
Whereas, According to the American Automobile Association (AAA), more than one million people have died in car crashes over the past 25 years in the United States; and
Whereas, AAA data notes that distracted driving contributes to up to 8,000 crashes every single day; and
Whereas, According to National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) 2009 data, 5,474 people were killed on U.S. roadways and an estimated additional 448,000 were injured in motor vehicle crashes that were reported to have involved distracted driving; and
Whereas, NHTSA defines distracted driving as any activity that could divert a person's attention away from the primary task of driving such as, but not limited to, texting, cell phone or smartphone usage, eating and drinking, passenger interaction, grooming, reading, navigation system usage, watching a video, adjusting the radio, and usage of a CD player or MP3 player; and
Whereas, Studies of the cell phone records of drivers involved in crashes suggest that using a cell phone while driving is associated with roughly a quadrupling of crash risk; and
Whereas, According to the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association (CTIA), there were 302.9 million wireless subscriber connections in the United States as of December 2010, nearly as many connections as there were people living in the United States; and
Whereas, CTIA noted that in the month of June 2011, more than 196 billion text messages were sent or received in the US, up nearly 50 percent from June 2009; and
Whereas, Texting is the most alarming distraction because it involves manual, visual, and cognitive distraction simultaneously. Sending or reading a text takes a driver's eyes off the road for 4.6 seconds which at 55 miles per hour is similar to driving the length of an entire football field, blindfolded; and
Whereas, According to the AAA Foundation's 2011 Traffic Safety Culture Index, 94 percent of drivers agree that texting or emailing while driving is unacceptable and 87 percent support laws against reading, typing or sending text messages or emails while driving; and
Whereas, Of those surveyed by AAA, despite acknowledging that texting, emailing and talking on a cell phone driving are dangerous, many drivers admit to engaging in these distracting behaviors; and
Whereas, NHTSA declared that the youngest and most inexperienced drivers are most at risk, with 16 percent of all distracted driving crashes involving drivers under 20; and
Whereas, All driver education curriculums, including the Motor Vehicle Commission and the Department of Education, in New Jersey should include components on the dangers of distracted driving, specifically including texting and cell phone usage; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The month of October 2012 is designated "Distracted Driver Education and Awareness Month" in the State of New Jersey to raise public awareness about the dangers of distracted driving, including texting and emailing while driving.
2. The Governor is requested to issue a proclamation calling upon public officials, including the Commissioners of the Motor Vehicle Commission and the Department of Education, and the citizens of this State to observe the month with appropriate educational events and activities.
3. A duly authenticated copy of this concurrent resolution signed by the Speaker of the General Assembly and attested by the Clerk of the General Assembly and signed by the President of the Senate and attested by the Secretary of the Senate, shall be transmitted to the Commissioner of the Motor Vehicle Commission and the Commissioner of the Department of Education.
4. This joint resolution shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This joint resolution designates October 2012 as "Distracted Driver Education and Awareness Month" in the State of New Jersey to raise public awareness about the dangers of distracted driving, specifically texting and emailing while driving.
A survey on risky behavior, conducted by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention among 15,000 public and private high school students across the country, found that 58 percent of seniors had texted or emailed while driving.
