Joint Committee on Finance/Traffic/Police and Fire ORDINANCE
WHEREAS, the City of Chicago is a home rule unit government pursuant to the 1970 Illinois Constitution, Article VII, Section 6(a); and
WHEREAS, pursuant to its home rule power, the City of Chicago may exercise any power and perform any function relating to its government and affairs including the power to regulate for the protection of the public health, safety, morals, and welfare; and
WHEREAS, improper use of mobile telephones by persons operating motor vehicles is a proven hazard to public safety; and
WHEREAS, the increase of individuals text messaging and browsing the internet via mobile telephones while driving has created an elevated hazard to public safety; and
WHEREAS, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in 2009, 5,474 people were killed on U.S. roadways and an estimated 448,000 were injured in motor vehicle crashes that involved distracted driving; and
WHEREAS, 20 percent of injury crashes in 2009 involved reports of distracted driving; and ,
WHEREAS, in 2009, 18 percent of the fatalities in distraction-related crashes involved reports of cell phone use; and
WHEREAS, the Illinois Secretary of State reports that using a cell phone or texting while driving increases the chances of getting into a crash by at least 400 percent; and
WHEREAS, the age group with the greatest proportion of distracted drivers is under-20 as 16 percent of all drivers younger than 20 years of age were reported to have been distracted while driving; and
WHEREAS, according to a study published by the University of Utah, using a cell phone while driving delays a driver's reactions as much as having a blood alcohol concentration at the legal limit of .08 percent; and
WHEREAS, on October 8, 2008, the City Council adopted an ordinance making it illegal to text while driving in the City of Chicago; and
WHEREAS, on August 6, 2009, Governor Pat Quinn signed HB 71, which made texting while driving illegal ...
Click here for full text