Text messaging while driving may be coming to a stop as two County Board committees send a proposal to stamp out the practice in Westchester. At their joint meeting today, the Legislation and Pubic Safety & Security Committees signed out a proposed local law that would ban the use of wireless handsets to compose, read or send text messages while operating a motor vehicle.  A public hearing on the proposed law is expected to be set for September 8th at 10:00 AM.
 
County Legislator Bill Burton added that one of the primary components of the law’s enforcement, if passed, would be an education campaign. Members of the Spano Administration, including Public Safety Commissioner Thomas Belfiore, agreed that there would be outreach attempts to municipalities and high schools to inform teen drivers and parents of the new policy.

If the text message ban is passed by the county, explained Burton, it would be enforceable at the municipal level by local police departments and would not apply to GPS or hands-free devices.

Lawmakers and officials liken the proposed text-messaging measure to the 2001 cell phone ban while driving law, a measure first taken up by Westchester and later adopted by the state.

The July meeting of the White Plains Downtown Residents Association will take place Monday, July 28 from 7:30--8:45 p.m. It is being held at Vintage Cafe, located on 171 Main Street. For more information, please visit www.downtownresidents.com.

The next mayoral race in White Plains is still a year away, but the preliminary machinations began in earnest this week, with the White Plains Democratic City Committee issuing a press release alleging that Democratic Councilman Glen Hockley is attempting to “take over the White Plains Democratic Party” as a “first step in his plan to secure the Democratic nomination for mayor.” Committee Chair Liz Shollenberger says in the release that the “maneuver” by Hockley is “self-centered” and “an attempt to turn the White Plains Democratic Party into a vehicle for the personal ambitions of a single politician, by people who have, up until now, shown little interest in ensuring the ongoing success of the Democratic Party and its mission.” Hockley, the press release says, is trying to oust many of the current district leaders (there are 86, two for each of the city’s 43 election districts); district leaders will be chosen in a Sept. 9 primary election.

Hockley said on Wednesday that he is simply “a supporter of the mission to improve our party” and one of many “independent-minded Democrats” that want a party and a Democratic City Committee that is “open to debate and open to differences in opinion.” He would not confirm or deny mayoral aspirations, but in response to Shollenberger’s contention that the petitioning for district leader candidates is related to his intention to seek the Democratic nomination next year, Hockley said “she’s pulling that out of the air.”

See our July 25 print issue or check back here on the 24th for a full report.