The proposed 'hands-free' bill is making its way through the legislature again, the latest in a string of efforts by lawmakers after similar bills have failed over the past 15 years.
Democratic State Senators Rhonda Fields and Chris Hansen are some of the bill’s main sponsors.
A hands-free device like Bluetooth would be required if you take a call while driving; otherwise, you face a $50 fine and two points for the first violation.
It’s something advocates like Bicycle Colorado have been pushing for years after seeing the number of cyclists killed by distracted driving go up over the years.
“A large number of those surviving family members we meet, we attend those funerals. And we talked to those moms and dads and husbands and wives and brothers and sisters. And a number of them have passed because of distracted driving. And so we experienced that grief firsthand,” said Pete Piccolo with Bicycle Colorado. “They're not just numbers to us. We know the stories behind that and lives that have been impacted.”
But other organizations, like the Colorado Union of Taxpayers, believe the bill is overstepping existing laws.
“I really encourage the people of Colorado to realize there are already laws on the books. We don't need any more laws on this,” said Kim Monson, president of the Colorado Union of Taxpayers. “We need to educate ourselves and have this free market answer to this, because more control over our lives is inch by inch we're losing our freedoms.”
The last effort to make hands-free devices the law was back in 2022.
The Senate committee voted unanimously this month to move Senate Bill 65 forward.
It now moves to the Senate Appropriations Committee.
