-Photo submitted by Taylor family
Gov. Kim Reynolds signed into law a bill mandating that Iowa drivers may only use their electronic devices in the hands-free mode while driving. The law goes into effect July 1. Present at the signing were the Roland Taylor family and others. Shown left to right are: Nicole Fahnlander and Kally Fahnlander (two of Taylor’s granddaughters); Lisa and Kevin Fahnlander (Taylor’s daughter and son-in-law; Gwen Taylor (Taylor’s wife); Chris Taylor, son of Roland and Gwen Taylor; Gov. Kim Reynolds; Angie and Nick Smith (Taylor’s daughter and son-in-law), and Lt. Gov. Chris Cournoyer.

DES MOINES — Sen. Dave Rowley, R-Iowa, District 5, said it was an emotional time in Des Moines on the day Gov. Kim Reynolds signed into law a bill that prohibits Iowa drivers from using their electronic devices while driving, unless they are in hands-free mode.

Reynolds was surrounded by families of victims, lawmakers and law enforcement officials as she signed Senate File 22 into law this past April 2.

Iowa is the 31st state to enact this law. It will expand the current law that bans writing, sending or viewing an electronic message while driving.

The new law, which goes into effect in Iowa on July 1, states that drivers found using electronic devices with their hands will face fines and possible suspension of driver’s licenses.

Henry County Sheriff Rich McNamee explains that law enforcement personnel will be required to issue warnings between July 1, 2025, and Jan. 1, 2026, in an effort to give people time to become educated on the new law. He said the current fine for texting and driving is $45, and will increase to $100 on Jan. 1, 2026.

-Submitted photo
Roland Taylor is shown driving his tractor. Taylor was driving his antique Farmall 300 utility tractor home from the first show of the season on April 2, 2023, when he was struck from behind by a distracted driver on U.S. Highway 71 north of Spencer, and killed.

“With a serious injury, the court can impose an additional fine of up to $500 and a suspended driver’s license up to 90 days,” he said. “In the case of a death and if a person is convicted, they can receive a fine of up to $1,000 or suspend their license for 180 days.”

Options

McNamee said Iowa drivers have options for becoming hands-free device users if they need to use them while driving. They include purchasing an auxiliary cable ($3 to $5; purchasing a vehicle mount ($5), which places a phone where it can be used hands-free while driving; activating the speaker on the phone, or purchasing a blue-tooth accessory ($20) or use the blue tooth capability in the vehicle.

Information from the Iowa legislature states that “voice-activated or hands-free mode” means, “… an attachment, accessory, application, wireless connection or built-in feature of an electronic device or motor vehicle that allows a person to use verbal commands or a single touch to activate or deactivate the device or a function/software application of the device.”

It goes on to say voice-activated or hands-free mode does not include access to non-navigation video content, engaging in a video call, accessing or engaging in video streaming, accessing gaming data, or reading an electronic message or notification.

Drivers can (while driving) make a hands-free or voice-activated (only) call, enter a phone number via voice command, enter a GPS address by voice command, use an electronic device in voice-activated or hands-free mode; use verbal commands to control a device, use a single touch to activate or deactivate a device, or use the device only at a complete stop — off of the traveled portion of the roadway, or as far away from the center of the roadway as possible.

Exemptions include public safety agencies, healthcare professionals in an emergency situation, reporting an emergency, responding to a transit-specific situation, operating an “implement of husbandry,” utility maintenance employees or contractors, transportation network company drivers while their vehicle is not in motion, accessing or using Fleet Management Systems, and two-way radio transmitters or receivers licensed with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Making of the law

Rowley said the making of the bill began in 2018 when Sen. Mark Lofgren, R-Iowa, was contacted by a bicycle safety group from the Quad Cities.

“They asked Sen. Lofgren to pen a bill to address the growing number of drivers they see distracted from texting and looking at their cell phones. (He) filed the original bill in 2018. I co-sponsored the bill in 2022 after being elected,” said Rowley.

The bill took seven years to clear, with Rowley explaining that — while it wasn’t difficult to pass per se, it just takes time to go through the sub-committee and committee processes before passing on the floor in both the Senate and the House, with each entity going through the same processes.

Information from the Iowa Legislature states that after passing a hands-free driving law, neighboring Minnesota saw a 30 percent decrease in the number of crashes, while Illinois saw a 22 percent decrease.

The 2023 impacts of distracted driving in Iowa alone resulted in 1,049 crashes, with 12 serious injuries and four fatalities.

“I’m hoping this law will deter texting and (help people to) use their hands-free options,” said Rowley. “According to the Department of Public Safety, if you use your voice to initiate your call, set the cell phone down and have it on audio; that is acceptable. Your best option is blue tooth and your vehicle’s built-in system, but if you have an older vehicle, setting your cell phone on audio and being hands-free is acceptable.”

Roland Taylor

Roland Taylor, a farmer from Terril in eastern Dickinson County, was driving his antique Farmall 300 utility tractor home from the first show of the season on April 2, 2023, when he was struck from behind by a distracted driver on U.S. Highway 71 north of Spencer, and killed.

“He loved driving his antique tractors; he said they needed to be exercised,” said Gwen Taylor, Roland Taylor’s wife. “He took the four-lane home because he said people had plenty of room to get around him.”

But the sheriff’s deputy showing up at her door after she returned home with the other tractor on a trailer changed her life forever, as well as that of her family.

During the fall of 2024 while the Taylor family was still recovering from that loss, they found themselves volunteering at the Branding Iron (restaurant) on the Clay County Fairgrounds. It was in those minutes before the restaurant opened to the public that they met with Gov. Kim Reynolds and her crew, who had come to Spencer to support the community following devastating flooding earlier that year, and stopped into the restaurant to see the renovations.

The Taylors saw this as an opportunity to encourage Reynolds to pass the hands-free bill, and they told her their story. They felt like she listened.

“We were all in tears (including the governor),” said Angie Smith, daughter of Roland and Gwen Taylor. “She was very moved and very much affected by visiting with Mom and hearing our story.”

Reynolds called Smith from her cell phone the week before the bill was signed, to tell them the bill would be passed into law, and invited them to come to Des Moines for the signing. This was after she had previously invited them to the condition of the state address.

“When she came into that bill signing, she made a bee-line right to Mom,” said Smith. “There were other families there for the signing too, but she just made a connection with Mom.”

Smith said her father would have been happy to know this new law has been enacted.

“Dad was all about giving, and if this saves even one life, that would make Dad so happy,” she said.

Reynolds issued a statement that week which said, “It’s especially meaningful that we (signed this bill into law) on April 2, exactly two years to the day Roland Taylor was tragically killed by a distracted driver. It was an honor to sign this bill in his memory and in memory of every Iowan lost to distracted driving,” said Reynolds.

Rowley said enacting laws like this will protect other drivers, pedestrians and bicyclists from being injured or killed, making Iowa roadways safer.

“Distracted driving — and in particular, texting while driving — is a danger that needs to be addressed. It was a privilege to co-sponsor SF-22 with Sen. Lofgren,” he said.

McNamee said drivers need to start thinking about this new law now.

“We’re hoping this grace period from July 1 through Jan. 1 gives drivers time to be educated, learn to drive without your device in your hand and drive safely,” said McNamee. “We’re hoping you do not get a ticket after Jan. 1 because you’ve learned during that first six months that you have to change your driving behavior.”