Kansas’ welcome new law banning text-messaging while driving — which Gov. Mark Parkinson formally signed last month and ceremonially signed Monday to honor the activism of the Wichita Mayor’s Youth Council — may not be enough for Kansans, judging from a new SurveyUSA poll sponsored by KWCH, Channel 12. Of those polled, 52 percent said that driving while using a cell phone should be outlawed and 77 percent said the state, rather than local governments, should decide the issue (though 75 percent said using hands-free cell phones is OK). The new law enables officers to stop and warn those they see texting while driving; as of Jan. 1, the offense will draw a $60 fine. But if the SurveyUSA results are to be believed, there shouldn’t be a lot of stopping going on — 79 percent of those polled said they “almost never” text or e-mail while behind the wheel.
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