ATLANTA – State Representative John Carson (R- Marietta), Chairman of the House Study Committee on Distracted Driving, recently announced the results of a new poll, which shows that nearly two-thirds of Georgia voters favor a hands-free driving law in Georgia. A total of 66.4 percent of Georgia voters support such a law, and 21.9 percent of Georgians are undecided on the matter.
“I’m encouraged to see that the majority of Georgia voters are supportive of a hands-free driving law in our state,” said Rep. Carson. “Last year alone, over 1,500 people died in automobile accidents on Georgia roads, and according to a recent poll, over 82 percent of Georgia voters believe that texting while driving is a major contributing factor to the increased number of auto accidents. Distracted diving is an extremely serious public safety concern, and it is absolutely essential that this issue is addressed in the 2018 General Assembly session to prevent further distracted driving-related car crashes and fatalities.”
During the 2017 legislative session, Rep. Carson sponsored House Resolution 282, which created the House Study Committee on Distracted Driving. Since its establishment, the ten-member study committee has examined whether changes to state law may help reduce instances of distracted driving. This study committee has concluded its meetings, and Rep. John Carson plans to issue the study committee’s report at the end of December.
The poll also found that a hands-free law has bi-partisan support. According to the survey, 72.4 percent of Georgia Republican voters and 64.5 percent of Georgia Democrat voters say they would support a statewide hands-free driving law. Undecided Republican voters were 19.1 percent of their party, and undecided Democrats were 23.5 percent of their party.
The poll was conducted by Landmark Communications, Inc. of Alpharetta, Georgia. From Oct. 7 – 8, 700 randomly selected active Georgia voters were surveyed by telephone. The margin of error for the survey is 3.7 percent. The survey was weighted by party affiliation, gender, race and age to reflect the likely demographic composition of a Georgia general election.
For more information on HR 282, please click here.
Representative John Carson represents the citizens of District 46, which includes portions of Cherokee and Cobb counties. He was elected into the House of Representatives in 2011, and currently serves as the Vice Chairman on the Appropriations, Energy, Utilities, & Telecommunications, and Intragovernmental Coordination committees, and Secretary on the Insurance Committee. He also serves on the Transportation and Ways & Means committees and is a member of the Military Affairs working group.
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