California lawmaker wants dogs off drivers' laps

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Dogs and driving don't mix, according to a state lawmaker who has introduced legislation that would make it illegal for motorists to keep pets on their laps.

"If you have an animal that gets in your face or gets tangled up in your steering wheel while you're driving, you can't properly control (the car)" said Assembly member Bill Maze, R-Visalia, who introduced the bill last week.

The measure does not detail how drivers could keep pets in their place. Maze suggested using a cage, or having another passenger hold them.

"You could end up having an animal sitting in the seat beside you," he said. "It just cannot be on your lap."

The bill is the latest attempt by lawmakers to eliminate driving distractions. Legislation that goes into effect July 1 bans the use of handheld cell phones while driving. As of that same day, residents younger than 18 can't use cell phones of any kind or text-messaging devices while driving.

Maze voted for the teen-phone ban but against the handheld-phone bill. Some of his fellow Republicans derided it as the work of a "nanny government" that regulates excessively.

Maze said the difference between that bill and his bill is that you can turn off a cell phone, but not a dog or cat.

A pet has "a mind of its own," he said. "It can wander around inside the cab. The worst possibility is they can get under your feet and get under the steering wheel." He added: "I see this as being a safety issue and causing insurance rates hopefully not to go up."

State Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, author of the cell-phone bill, pointed out that of all distractions, cell-phone use is a leading factor contributing to collisions.

Sgt. John Maxfield, of the California Highway Patrol, said he was not aware of any recent accidents caused by pets in the car. But he lumped cats and dogs in with shaving, eating and other distractions that have the potential to cause drivers to lose control.

"All those ... distract the driver from paying 100 percent attention to the road, which is where the attention needs to be," he said.

Nothing in current law prevents pets from roaming freely in a car. The only restriction is that pets who are put in the back of a pickup must be secured in a cage or by other means, Maxfield said.

Maze, who represents a mostly rural district, said he has noticed more people driving with pets on laps. His bill applies to all "live animals." It doesn't specify penalties for violations. He said he is still finalizing such details.

The bill faces an uncertain future in the Democratic-controlled Legislature.

"This isn't likely to be partisan bill," said Steve Maviglio, a spokesman for Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles. "It will live or die on its own merits -- or lack thereof."

It took Simitian years to get his cell-phone bill passed, but he was fighting the cell-phone industry. It is early, but it doesn't appear that Maze's bill will face such a powerful opponent.

Animal-rights groups have not analyzed the legislation. But at least one group gave it an initial thumbs-up.

"This certainly sounds like something we could support, given the danger to the driver should the pet get under the brake or pedal," said Lisa Weisberg, of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

The most humane way to restrain pets is with a cage, she said. Like most animal-rights activists, the group opposes tethering.

Other options include using a harness that can be affixed to a seat belt, said Lisa Peterson, of the American Kennel Club. Drivers of station wagons or vans might consider installing a grate and keeping their pet behind it, she said.

Grates "aren't optimal," she said. "But they're better than nothing."

(The reporter can be reached at eschultz(at)fresnobee.com.)

(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)