One of two bills in the South Dakota Legislature that would ban texting and driving gains approval by a Senate committee Wednesday. The Senate State Affairs Committee voted five-to-four to pass House Bill 1177. The bill, brought by Representative Brian Gosch of Rapid City, would make municipal texting ordinances like Huron’s null and void. Huron Public Safety Director Gary Will Jr. says HB 1177 would handcuff his officer’s ability to deal with a serious issue for Huron…
The second bill, Senate Bill 179, would allow the handful of South Dakota cities with texting or distracted driving ordinances to keep them in place. Both bills make the penalty a secondary offense with SB 179 offering a larger fine…
SB 179 will have a hearing before the House Transportation Committee Thursday. Lawmakers could seek to combine the proposed statues into one single law before the legislative session wraps up next week.