Full Notification

Effective December 1, 2010, a new law went into effect prohibiting texting while driving.

WI State Statute 346.89(3)(a) reads “No person may drive any motor vehicle while composing or sending an electronic text message or an electronic mail message.”

First-time offenders could be fined between $20 and $400 dollars (plus court costs)if they are pulled over for texting and will also have 4 demerit points added to their license. Second-time offenders could rack up fines from $200 to $800.

The new ban is also a primary law, which means officers can pull over drivers solely for texting without having to identify another violation first, such as speeding or a lane violation, according to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation.

This law does not ban the use of cell phones while driving, provided the driver does not commit inattentive driving while doing so. Each year in Wisconsin, an average of about 9,000 drivers are convicted of Inattentive Driving. Last year, inattentive driving was a contributing factor in 19,578 of the 109,991 (18%) of all reported crashes and 68 of the 488 (14%) of all fatal crashes. There is no data available on how many of those specifically involved cell phone use or texting.