One state lawmaker and one parent who lost his 16-year-old daughter are among a group of lawmakers and citizens that are determined to pass stricter driving laws for teenage drivers in Pennsylvania. House Bill 67 prescribed passenger and cell phone limitations for teenage drivers. The bill did not ultimately pass in the state Senate this year. Staying on his path to reduce teen car accidents, Representative Shapiro from the 153rd District plans to reintroduce a bill similar to House Bill 67 this coming year.

A father is also behind Shapiro’s effort. A father form Perkiomen, Pennsylvania lost his 16-year-old daughter in a tragic car accident on March 10, 2008. The man recently sent lawmakers an email asking them to set further restrictions for teenage drivers. The father described the email as his holiday wish and that the passage of a new teenage driving bill would be his holiday present.

Representative Shapiro has said that a new bill would save lives on the road and that some of his constituents have expressed strong reactions when the state Senate failed to adopt House Bill 67. In the father’s push for a new bill, he advocated the issue to lawmakers by pointing out that four teenagers were killed in two separate Pennsylvania car accidents that occurred between November 23 and December 12.

Under House Bill 67, a teenage driver would have been given a primary offense if they held a learner’s permit or junior driver’s license and used their cell phone while driving. The state Senate reduced the offense to a secondary one. Passenger restrictions could also not be agreed on by the state Senate. Rural area state Senators lobbied for an amendment to the passenger restrictions because rural teens confront fewer transportation options than their urban peers.

Source: The Times Herald, “Top Stories of 2010: Teen Driving Bill Stalls,” Carl Hessler Jr., 12/26/10