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RESOLUTION NO. 2017-082 <br />A RESOLUTION BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF <br />INDIAN RIVER COUNTY, FLORIDA, ENCOURAGING THE FLORIDA <br />LEGISLATURE TO ENACT LEGISLATION THAT WOULD MAKE <br />TEXTING WHILE DRIVING A PRIMARY TRAFFIC OFFENSE. <br />WHEREAS, distracted driving is driving while performing another activity that shifts the <br />driver's attention away from driving; and <br />WHEREAS, texting while driving is a form of distracted driving; and <br />WHEREAS, texting while driving makes the likelihood of a crash 23 times greater than <br />driving while not distracted, according to the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute; and <br />WHEREAS, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reported an <br />estimated total of 967,000 crashes in the United States involving distracted drivers in 2014, resulting <br />in 3,179 deaths and approximately 431,000 injuries; and <br />WHEREAS, the concern of the American public over distracted driving has grown <br />exponentially, resulting in the first-ever national distracted driving enforcement and advertising <br />campaign in April, 2014 by the United States Department of Transportation; and <br />WHEREAS, the degree of cognitive distraction associated with mobile phone use is so high <br />that drivers using mobile phones exhibit greater impairment than legally intoxicated drivers, <br />according to a University of Utah study; and <br />WHEREAS, the Florida Legislature enacted Chapter 2002-179, Laws of Florida (Senate Bill <br />358), which preempted local governments from regulating the use of electronic communications <br />devices in motor vehicles; and <br />WHEREAS, during the 2013 regular session, the Florida Legislature passed the Florida Ban <br />on Texting While Driving Law, which made texting while driving a noncriminal traffic secondary <br />infraction; and <br />WHEREAS, a secondary offense is an offense for which a law enforcement officer can issue <br />a ticket only if a driver has been pulled over for committing another traffic violation; and <br />WHEREAS, despite making texting while driving a secondary offense, The Florida <br />Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FDHSMV) reports that distracted driving <br />crashes have increased 26% since 2013; and <br />WHEREAS, according to statistics from the FDHSMV, Indian River County had 2,360 <br />crashes in calendar year 2016 and 383 of those (16%) were distracted driving crashes with 21 <br />resulting in incapacitating injuries and 5 fatalities; and <br />WHEREAS, Florida is among only five states that does not enforce texting while driving as <br />a primary offense, but instead as a secondary offense; and <br />1 <br />