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California Digital License Plates Would Cause More Distracted Driving

As if motorists in California did not have enough distractions from cell phones and text messaging, they may soon expect distracting digital ads on the California digital license plates of vehicles in front of or around them. If a new bill proposed by a California lawmaker is successful, license plates in California could go digital, and have advertisements and messages posted on them.

It’s the latest scheme the state has come up with in order to fix the dismal state of its finances. A bill proposed earlier this week by Sen. Curren D. Price Junior, Democrat-Inglewood, would give the California Department of Motor Vehicles the go-ahead to investigate what is known as Digital Electronic License Plate technology. The technology would transform regular license plates into message boards that can carry advertisements and all kinds of other images.

These advertisements and digital images would only be posted on the license plate when the vehicle is stopped for 4 seconds or more. The bill allows the Department of Motor Vehicles to collaborate with private companies to develop Digital Electronic License Plate technology. The DMV is next expected to present a final report to the Legislature on how these technologies can be utilized. The DMV is also authorized to conduct real-world trials to collect information on how successful these technologies will be in generating revenues for the state.

Obviously, it is the potential of the California digital license plates to generate more revenues for the state that is at the heart of the bill. If the bill is approved, the Department of Motor Vehicles would be able to charge private vehicle owners for the right to post advertising or other digital images on the license plates. For instance, you would need to pay a fee to the Department of Motor Vehicles to post images of your favorite sports team or band on the license plate. Supporters of the bill insist that there are other financial benefits to be gained by digitizing license plates in California. For instance, this could help create new jobs in the technology sector, as well as in the marketing and service areas.

California car accident lawyers have very little doubt that these digitized license plates will prove a boon to the state finance department. There will be no shortage of people willing to pay a fee to have commercial advertising or other images or personalized messages, displayed on their license plate. However, the fact is you cannot ignore the vast potential for distractions caused by these license plates.

At a time when states around the country are proceeding to crackdown on distracted driving behaviors, it’s pathetic that California is actually considering going back several steps by installing digitized displays on license plates. The bill’s supporters insist that the messages will be displayed only for 4 seconds or more, when the vehicle is stopped. What happens if the images get stuck due to some technical disruption, and remain on the license plate the entire time the driver is traveling? Or if a driver passing a stopped vehicle is distracted by the digitized license plates. This is a stupid idea, and hopefully will be shot down as quickly as possible. There are other ways the state can balance its budget without impacting motorist’s safety

The Reeves Law Group is a law firm with offices throughout California dedicated exclusively to the representation of personal injury victims, including victims of car accidents. Please visit our website at http://www.robertreeveslaw.com/. If you desire a free consultation on a personal injury matter, please call us at (800) 644-8000 or email us at contact@robertreeveslaw.com.

The Reeves Law Group is not representing any party in the matters discussed in this posting.

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