California considers bill banning pets from drivers' laps

No more dogs behind the steering wheel.

Canines don't have to be back-seat drivers, but they'd better stay away from the gas pedal under legislation passed Monday by the California State Assembly.

Lambasted by radio's Rush Limbaugh and ridiculed as the "Paris Hilton Bill" in honor of the celebrity dog lover, the measure now goes to the state Senate.

But Assemblyman Bill Maze said his bill could be a matter of life or death.

"It's a safety measure," he said.

Current law requires animals to be secured in the back of a pickup, but allows them to roam freely inside a vehicle.

Supporters hailed the bill as common sense while opponents complained that government shouldn't dictate who can sit in their lap - period.

"I think we can probably spend the government's money on more significant issues," said Vickie Cleary, an Antelope resident and dog lover.

Bill Hemby, chairman of PetPAC, a pet owners group, said cuddling animals while driving can be distracting and cause accidents.

"I think it's a dangerous thing, especially if you have a small dog that falls on your feet and you can't hit the gas pedal or the brake," he said.

A Modesto driver was injured last month when she crashed into a power pole after she was scratched by a cat on her lap, according to press reports.

Patrons of Partner Park, a Sacramento off-leash dog facility, had mixed reactions Monday to Maze's Assembly Bill 2233.

Kent Kim, 58, suggested that government should keep its nose out of people's laps.

"I think we have plenty of laws," Kim said. "I think government should let people take responsibility for themselves."

Kim said he discourages his dog from hopping onto his lap in the car, but it has happened from time to time without incident.

Gina Santana, 31, said the legislation could benefit pets and their owners.

"If they get in a car accident, that dog would fly out the window," she said.

Steve Archer, a Sacramento retiree, said he has mixed emotions about the bill. Government tends to over-regulate, but it's hard to defend a driver's right to cuddle lap dogs.

"I don't feel like the guy in the next lane is really paying attention if he's got a dog in his lap leaning out the window," Archer said.

Marci Landgraf, 37, said passage of the bill might encourage manufacturers to create more comfortable devices to secure animals in vehicles.

"I love dogs, I love being close to them," added Sandy Ettinger of Aptos. "But when I'm in a car, pushing 3,000 pounds of metal at 60 miles an hour, I also like to keep my fellow motorists alive."

On the Assembly floor, Maze argued that accidents caused by driving while cuddling a canine, or other animal, can raise insurance rates.

Statistics were not readily available on the number of accidents caused by drivers distracted by holding animals on their laps.

Eight percent of drivers surveyed by Nationwide Mutual Insurance in 2006 said they had held a pet while behind the wheel.

Maze also pointed to a recent American Automobile Association study that found pets and loose objects were common distractions and significant traffic hazards.

Violators of the proposed law would not be penalized with higher insurance rates, but they could be slapped with base fines of $35 that could rise to about $150 through penalty assessments, Maze said.

Assemblyman Dave Jones voted in favor of the legislation.

"Anybody with common sense has to know that they shouldn't be driving with an animal on their lap," he said. "But if there are some people who think it's acceptable, I suppose the bill will send a clear signal."

The bill, AB 2233, had no formal opposition, but Assemblyman Martin Garrick criticized the measure as "overreaching."

"I would hope an individual would act responsibly," he said. "But if the dog is a small animal and it happens to be on your lap, I don't see that as a major distraction."

(E-mail Jim Sanders at jsanders(at)sacbee.com)

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