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Bill Would Make Talking On Phone While Driving Illegal In North Carolina

AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File

If you're on the phone while driving your car, you may need to wrap up that conversation. Talking on the phone in the driver's seat may soon be illegal in North Carolina.

House Bill 144 proposes a $100 fine for people convicted of talking on their phone while driving.

The News and Observer reports the bill is being co-sponsored by three Republicans and one Democrat, and would take effect in 2020 if passed.

The legislation does include some exceptions. Motorists would be allowed to talk while parked. And drivers over 18 could use a cell phone if it's mounted in a way that allows for initiating, answering, or ending a call with a single button.

North Carolina is already one of 47 states that have banned texting while driving. It would be the 17th state to pass talking-while-driving legislation.

Another driving-related bill is making its way through the legislature.

The state Senate on Thursday approved increased penalties for motorists who don't change lanes or slow down when approaching emergency vehicles' flashing lights.

Neal Charnoff joined 88.5 WFDD as Morning Edition host in 2014. Raised in the Catskill region of upstate New York, he graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1983. Armed with a liberal arts degree, Neal was fully equipped to be a waiter. So he prolonged his arrested development bouncing around New York and L.A. until discovering that people enjoyed listening to his voice on the radio. After a few years doing overnight shifts at a local rock station, Neal spent most of his career at Vermont Public Radio. He began as host of a nightly jazz program, where he was proud to interview many of his idols, including Dave Brubeck and Sonny Rollins. Neal graduated to the news department, where he was the local host for NPR's All Things Considered for 14 years. In addition to news interviews and features, he originated and produced the Weekly Conversation On The Arts, as well as VPR Backstage, which profiled theater productions around the state. He contributed several stories to NPR, including coverage of a devastating ice storm. Neal now sees the value of that liberal arts degree, and approaches life with the knowledge that all subjects and all art forms are connected to each other. Neal and his wife Judy are enjoying exploring North Carolina and points south. They would both be happy to never experience a Vermont winter again.

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