The Colorado Senate approved legislation Monday seeking to ban adults from talking on cellphones while driving, except when using a hands-free accessory like a Bluetooth headset.

Under current law, adult drivers are allowed to use cellphones for calls but they cannot text or browse the internet. If passed, Senate Bill 175 would prohibit all hand-held cellphone use. Drivers under the age of 18 are already prohibited from all cellphone use, including hands-free.

The Senate voted 24-10 in support of the bill Monday, sending it to the House for consideration.

“This is a great step forward for Colorado,” said bill sponsor Sen. Chris Hansen, D-Denver. “I’ve been hit twice by distracted drivers. Both times, they had their cellphones up to their ears, not paying attention enough to the road, not keeping their hands available to control their vehicle. … Luckily, I’m here to tell the tale, but unfortunately that doesn’t always happen.”

During a committee meeting on April 5, several victims of car crashes resulting from distracted driving testified in support of the bill. The victims included multiple people who had lost friends or family members and a Boulder man who lost both of his legs.

Last year, 91% of Coloradans admitted to driving while distracted, according to a survey from the Colorado Department of Transportation. The survey found that 54% of drivers said they read text messages while driving and nearly 50% talk on cellphones without hands-free accessories – which would be prohibited under the proposed bill.

In 2020, there were 10,166 car crashes involving distracted drivers in Colorado, resulting in 1,476 injuries and 68 deaths, the department said. In 2021, there was a 47% increase in fatal crashes caused by distracted driving statewide, according to the Colorado State Patrol.

The Democrat-sponsored bill received both bipartisan support and opposition. Of the 10 senators who voted against the bill, seven are Republicans and three are Democrats.

“I find these attempts to be virtually unenforceable and a new, unnecessary burden on law enforcement who should really be spending their efforts to curb the violent crime wave we are seeing in Colorado,” said Sen. Jim Smallwood, R-Parker, calling the bill, “another effort to have the government dictating good judgement to our otherwise law-abiding and safe driving citizens.”

Other concerns included that the bill would result in disproportionate policing and racial profiling. However, Hansen said the bill includes demographic reporting and a requirement that police cannot issue the citation unless they explicitly see a driver using their phone.

Colorado lawmakers have tried unsuccessfully to ban talking on the phone while driving at least three other times. In 2020, Hansen sponsored SB20-65, which is nearly identical to the new SB-175. Hansen’s predecessor, Sen. Lois Court, D-Denver, also pushed similar bills in 2018 and 2019.

Senate Minority Leader Chris Holbert, R-Douglas County, said he voted against previous efforts to pass the ban but is in support of the newest proposed bill.

Holbert said, in 2010, he nearly rear-ended another car because he was looking at his phone while driving and didn’t see that traffic had stopped. A few years ago, he said he was on his phone while stopped at a red light and he ran the light after hearing someone honk their horn, mistakenly assuming they were honking at him because the light turned green.

“I’m not innocent. I think none of us could claim complete innocence with these devices in our cars,” Holbert said. “But how many times do we need to see that, how many times do we need to be the victim of that before we recognize? … We have to step in and say, no.”

Under the proposed bill, a driver caught using their cellphone would get a $75 fine and two license suspension points for the first offense. If a driver gets another citation within 24 months, they would face a $150 fine and three points for the second offense, and a $250 fine and four points for all subsequent offenses. The fines and points could be waived if the driver proves to the court they have purchased a hands-free device, Hansen said.

Drivers exempt from the bill would include first responders, utility workers, commercial truckers, commercial license holders, drivers using their cellphones to report emergencies and drivers who are parked. 

Using hand-held cellphones while driving is already banned in 24 states and Washington D.C., according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.