S-4041.1  _______________________________________________

                         SENATE BILL 6237

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      54th Legislature     1996 Regular Session

By Senators Prince, Owen, Wood and Prentice

Read first time 01/09/96.  Referred to Committee on Transportation.

Permitting the use of certain wireless communications and computer equipment in vehicles.

    AN ACT Relating to vehicles using wireless communications and computer systems; and amending RCW 46.37.480.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

    Sec. 1.  RCW 46.37.480 and 1991 c 95 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

    (1) No person shall drive any motor vehicle equipped with any television viewer, screen, or other means of visually receiving a television broadcast which is located in the motor vehicle at any point forward of the back of the driver's seat, or which is visible to the driver while operating the motor vehicle.  This subsection does not apply to law enforcement vehicles communicating with mobile computer networks.

    (2) No person shall operate any motor vehicle on a public highway while wearing any headset or earphones connected to any electronic device capable of receiving a radio broadcast or playing a sound recording for the purpose of transmitting a sound to the human auditory senses and which headset or earphones muffle or exclude other sounds.  This subsection does not apply to students and instructors participating in a Washington state motorcycle safety program.

    (3) This section does not apply to authorized emergency vehicles ((or to)), motorcyclists wearing a helmet with built-in headsets or earphones as approved by the Washington state patrol, or motorists using hands-free, wireless communications systems.

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