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Gov. Deal to Sign "Hands-Free Georgia Act" into Law Wednesday

Georgia.gov

Governor Nathan Deal will sign the “Hands-Free Georgia Act” tomorrow in Statesboro. Dozens of families are expected to attend the signing of HB 673.

The grassroots non-profit organization, StopDistractions.org, says hundreds of families in the state are impacted by distracted driving each year, and hopefully the “hands-free” law will help prevent loss of life.

The parents of the five nursing students killed a 2015 crash with a tractor-trailer on I-16 will be among those attending the signing which takes place at the Statesboro-Bulloch County Airport at 2 pm Wednesday.

Once signed into law, Georgia drivers would not be able to physically hold a phone, iPad, Kindle or similar device, use text messages, record, broadcast or watch a video on their mobile devices. They would still be able to use phones on a hands-free basis, GPS, voice texts, and touch their phones for dialing, receiving or ending calls. The measure would go into effect on July 1, 2018.

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