As if it wasn't hard enough to send text messages while you drive, now you have to contend with confines of a seat belt or pay a fine.
Gov. Charlie Crist is poised to sign a new law that will allow cops to pull motorists over if they catch them without a seat belt on and hit them with a $30 citation. Some counties could choose to charge as much as $120.
It was already the law to wear a seat belt, but it could only be enforced if you were caught doing something else wrong like speeding or running a stop sign.
The new seat belt bill received resounding support in both the House and Senate, unlike a proposed bill that would make it illegal to text message and drive at the same time. That measure failed miserably.
The theory must be as long as someone has on a seat belt, it doesn't matter what they are doing while they drive. That includes texting, eating your breakfast, doing your hair or watching your dashboard TV while you navigate rush hour traffic.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates 124 lives a year could be saved in Florida if people would just buckle up.
So don't look at it as another way for cops to harass you on the roadways.
Local
But do yourself a favor. Buckle up and save some dough.
