AN ACT Relating to updating the distracted driving infraction; amending RCW 46.25.010; adding new sections to chapter 46.61 RCW; repealing RCW 46.61.667 and 46.61.668; prescribing penalties; and providing an effective date.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 46.61 RCW to read as follows:

(1) A person who uses a personal electronic device while driving a motor vehicle on a public highway is guilty of a traffic infraction and must pay a fine as provided in RCW 46.63.110(3).

(2) Subsection (1) of this section does not apply to:

(a) A driver who is using a personal electronic device to contact emergency services;

(b) The use of a system by a transit system employee for time-sensitive relay communication between the transit system employee and the transit system's dispatch services;

(c) An individual employed as a commercial motor vehicle driver who uses a personal electronic device within the scope of such individual's employment if such use is permitted under 49 U.S.C. Sec. 31136 as it existed on the effective date of this section; and

(d) A person operating an authorized emergency vehicle.

(3) The state preempts the field of regulating the use of personal electronic devices in motor vehicles while driving, and this section supersedes any local laws, ordinances, orders, rules, or regulations enacted by any political subdivision or municipality to regulate the use of a personal electronic device by the operator of a motor vehicle.

(4) A second or subsequent offense under this section is subject to two times the penalty amount under RCW 46.63.110.

(5) For purposes of this section:

(a) "Driving" means to operate a motor vehicle on a public highway, including while temporarily stationary because of traffic, a traffic control device, or other momentary delays. "Driving" does not include when the vehicle has pulled over to the side of, or off of, an active roadway and has stopped in a location where it can safely remain stationary.

(b) "Personal electronic device" means any portable electronic device that is capable of wireless communication or electronic data retrieval and is not manufactured primarily for hands-free use in a motor vehicle. "Personal electronic device" includes, but is not limited to, a cell phone, tablet, laptop, two-way messaging device, or electronic game. "Personal electronic device" does not include two-way radio, citizens band radio, or amateur radio equipment.

(c) "Use" or "uses" means:

(i) Holding a personal electronic device in either hand or both hands;

(ii) Using your hand or finger to compose, send, read, view, access, browse, transmit, save, or retrieve email, text messages, instant messages, photographs, or other electronic data; however, this does not preclude the minimal use of a finger to activate, deactivate, or initiate a function of the device;

(iii) Watching video on a personal electronic device.

(1) RCW 46.61.667 (Using a wireless communications device or handheld mobile telephone while driving) and 2013 c 224 s 15, 2010 c 223 s 3, & 2007 c 417 s 2; and

(2) RCW 46.61.668 (Sending, reading, or writing a text message while driving) and 2013 c 224 s 16, 2010 c 223 s 4, & 2007 c 416 s 1.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3.  A new section is added to chapter 46.61 RCW to read as follows:

(1)(a) It is a traffic infraction to drive dangerously distracted. Any driver who commits this infraction must be assessed a base penalty of thirty dollars.

(b) Enforcement of the infraction of driving dangerously distracted may be accomplished only as a secondary action when a driver of a motor vehicle has been detained for a suspected violation of a separate traffic infraction or an equivalent local ordinance.

(c) For the purposes of this section, "dangerously distracted" means a person who engages in any activity not related to the actual operation of a motor vehicle in a manner that interferes with the safe operation of such motor vehicle on any highway.

(2) The additional monetary penalty imposed under this section must be deposited into the distracted driving prevention account created in subsection (3) of this section.

(3) The distracted driving prevention account is created in the state treasury. All receipts from the base penalty in subsection (1) of this section must be deposited into the account. Moneys in the account may be spent only after appropriation. Expenditures from the account may be used only to support programs dedicated to reducing distracted driving and improving driver education on distracted driving.

Sec. 4.  RCW 46.25.010 and 2013 c 224 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:

The definitions set forth in this section apply throughout this chapter.

(1) "Alcohol" means any substance containing any form of alcohol, including but not limited to ethanol, methanol, propanol, and isopropanol.

(2) "Alcohol concentration" means:

(a) The number of grams of alcohol per one hundred milliliters of blood; or

(b) The number of grams of alcohol per two hundred ten liters of breath.

(3) "Commercial driver's license" (CDL) means a license issued to an individual under chapter 46.20 RCW that has been endorsed in accordance with the requirements of this chapter to authorize the individual to drive a class of commercial motor vehicle.

(4) The "commercial driver's license information system" (CDLIS) is the information system established pursuant to 49 U.S.C. Sec. 31309 to serve as a clearinghouse for locating information related to the licensing and identification of commercial motor vehicle drivers.

(5) "Commercial learner's permit" (CLP) means a permit issued under RCW 46.25.052 for the purposes of behind-the-wheel training.

(6) "Commercial motor vehicle" means a motor vehicle or combination of motor vehicles used in commerce to transport passengers or property if the motor vehicle:

(a) Has a gross combination weight rating or gross combination weight of 11,794 kilograms or more (26,001 pounds or more), whichever is greater, inclusive of a [any] towed unit [or units] with a gross vehicle weight rating or gross vehicle weight of more than 4,536 kilograms (10,000 pounds or more), whichever is greater; or

(b) Has a gross vehicle weight rating or gross vehicle weight of 11,794 kilograms or more (26,001 pounds or more), whichever is greater; or

(c) Is designed to transport sixteen or more passengers, including the driver; or

(d) Is of any size and is used in the transportation of hazardous materials as defined in this section; or

(e) Is a school bus regardless of weight or size.

(7) "Conviction" means an unvacated adjudication of guilt, or a determination that a person has violated or failed to comply with the law in a court of original jurisdiction or by an authorized administrative tribunal, an unvacated forfeiture of bail or collateral deposited to secure the person's appearance in court, a plea of guilty or nolo contendere accepted by the court, the payment of a fine or court cost, entry into a deferred prosecution program under chapter 10.05 RCW, or violation of a condition of release without bail, regardless of whether or not the penalty is rebated, suspended, or probated.

(8) "Disqualification" means a prohibition against driving a commercial motor vehicle.

(9) "Drive" means to drive, operate, or be in physical control of a motor vehicle in any place open to the general public for purposes of vehicular traffic. For purposes of RCW 46.25.100, 46.25.110, and 46.25.120, "drive" includes operation or physical control of a motor vehicle anywhere in the state.

(10) "Drugs" are those substances as defined by RCW 69.04.009, including, but not limited to, those substances defined by 49 C.F.R. Sec. 40.3.

(11) "Employer" means any person, including the United States, a state, or a political subdivision of a state, who owns or leases a commercial motor vehicle, or assigns a person to drive a commercial motor vehicle.

(12) "Gross vehicle weight rating" (GVWR) means the value specified by the manufacturer as the maximum loaded weight of a single vehicle. The GVWR of a combination or articulated vehicle, commonly referred to as the "gross combined weight rating" or GCWR, is the GVWR of the power unit plus the GVWR of the towed unit or units. If the GVWR of any unit cannot be determined, the actual gross weight will be used. If a vehicle with a GVWR of less than 11,794 kilograms (26,001 pounds or less) has been structurally modified to carry a heavier load, then the actual gross weight capacity of the modified vehicle, as determined by RCW 46.44.041 and 46.44.042, will be used as the GVWR.

(13) "Hazardous materials" means any material that has been designated as hazardous under 49 U.S.C. Sec. 5103 and is required to be placarded under subpart F of 49 C.F.R. Part 172 or any quantity of a material listed as a select agent or toxin in 42 C.F.R. Part 73.

(14) "Motor vehicle" means a vehicle, machine, tractor, trailer, or semitrailer propelled or drawn by mechanical power used on highways, or any other vehicle required to be registered under the laws of this state, but does not include a vehicle, machine, tractor, trailer, or semitrailer operated exclusively on a rail.

(15) "Out-of-service order" means a declaration by an authorized enforcement officer of a federal, state, Canadian, Mexican, or local jurisdiction that a driver, a commercial motor vehicle, or a motor carrier operation is out-of-service pursuant to 49 C.F.R. Secs. 386.72, 392.5, 395.13, 396.9, or compatible laws, or the North American uniform out-of-service criteria.

(16) "Positive alcohol confirmation test" means an alcohol confirmation test that:

(a) Has been conducted by a breath alcohol technician under 49 C.F.R. Part 40; and

(b) Indicates an alcohol concentration of 0.04 or more.

A report that a person has refused an alcohol test, under circumstances that constitute the refusal of an alcohol test under 49 C.F.R. Part 40, will be considered equivalent to a report of a positive alcohol confirmation test for the purposes of this chapter.

(17) "School bus" means a commercial motor vehicle used to transport preprimary, primary, or secondary school students from home to school, from school to home, or to and from school-sponsored events. School bus does not include a bus used as a common carrier.

(18) "Serious traffic violation" means:

(a) Excessive speeding, defined as fifteen miles per hour or more in excess of the posted limit;

(b) Reckless driving, as defined under state or local law;

(c) Driving while using a ((handheld wireless communications device [handheld mobile telephone], defined as a violation of RCW 46.61.667(1)(b))) personal electronic device, defined as a violation of section 1 of this act, which includes in the activities it prohibits driving while holding a personal electronic device in either or both hands and using a hand or finger for texting, or an equivalent administrative rule or local law, ordinance, rule, or resolution;

(d) ((Texting, defined as a violation of RCW 46.61.668(1)(b) or an equivalent administrative rule or local law, ordinance, rule, or resolution;

(e))) A violation of a state or local law relating to motor vehicle traffic control, other than a parking violation, arising in connection with an accident or collision resulting in death to any person;

(((f))) (e) Driving a commercial motor vehicle without obtaining a commercial driver's license;

(((g))) (f) Driving a commercial motor vehicle without a commercial driver's license in the driver's possession; however, any individual who provides proof to the court by the date the individual must appear in court or pay any fine for such a violation, that the individual held a valid CDL on the date the citation was issued, is not guilty of a "serious traffic violation";

(((h))) (g) Driving a commercial motor vehicle without the proper class of commercial driver's license endorsement or endorsements for the specific vehicle group being operated or for the passenger or type of cargo being transported; and

(((i))) (h) Any other violation of a state or local law relating to motor vehicle traffic control, other than a parking violation, that the department determines by rule to be serious.

(19) "State" means a state of the United States and the District of Columbia.

(20) "Substance abuse professional" means an alcohol and drug specialist meeting the credentials, knowledge, training, and continuing education requirements of 49 C.F.R. Sec. 40.281.

(21) "Tank vehicle" means any commercial motor vehicle that is designed to transport any liquid or gaseous materials within a tank or tanks having an individual rated capacity of more than one hundred nineteen gallons and an aggregate rated capacity of one thousand gallons or more that is either permanently or temporarily attached to the vehicle or the chassis. A commercial motor vehicle transporting an empty storage container tank, not designed for transportation, with a rated capacity of one thousand gallons or more that is temporarily attached to a flatbed trailer is not considered a tank vehicle.

(22) "Type of driving" means one of the following:

(a) "Nonexcepted interstate," which means the CDL or CLP holder or applicant operates or expects to operate in interstate commerce, is both subject to and meets the qualification requirements under 49 C.F.R. Part 391 as it existed on July 8, 2014, or such subsequent date as may be provided by the department by rule, consistent with the purposes of this section, and is required to obtain a medical examiner's certificate under 49 C.F.R. Sec. 391.45 as it existed on July 8, 2014, or such subsequent date as may be provided by the department by rule, consistent with the purposes of this section;

(b) "Excepted interstate," which means the CDL or CLP holder or applicant operates or expects to operate in interstate commerce, but engages exclusively in transportation or operations excepted under 49 C.F.R. Secs. 390.3(f), 391.2, 391.68, or 398.3, as they existed on July 8, 2014, or such subsequent date as may be provided by the department by rule, consistent with the purposes of this section, from all or parts of the qualification requirements of 49 C.F.R. Part 391 as it existed on July 8, 2014, or such subsequent date as may be provided by the department by rule, consistent with the purposes of this section, and is therefore not required to obtain a medical examiner's certificate under 49 C.F.R. Sec. 391.45 as it existed on July 8, 2014, or such subsequent date as may be provided by the department by rule, consistent with the purposes of this section;

(c) "Nonexcepted intrastate," which means the CDL or CLP holder or applicant operates only in intrastate commerce and is therefore subject to state driver qualification requirements; or

(d) "Excepted intrastate," which means the CDL or CLP holder or applicant operates in intrastate commerce, but engages exclusively in transportation or operations excepted from all or parts of the state driver qualification requirements.

(23) "United States" means the fifty states and the District of Columbia.

(24) "Verified positive drug test" means a drug test result or validity testing result from a laboratory certified under the authority of the federal department of health and human services that:

(a) Indicates a drug concentration at or above the cutoff concentration established under 49 C.F.R. Sec. 40.87; and

(b) Has undergone review and final determination by a medical review officer.

A report that a person has refused a drug test, under circumstances that constitute the refusal of a federal department of transportation drug test under 49 C.F.R. Part 40, will be considered equivalent to a report of a verified positive drug test for the purposes of this chapter.

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