A Different Kind of Road Rage

New York Assemblyman Felix Ortiz is often described as pesky, but he'd rather be labeled a mean dog.

“I'm a big pit bull,” he said in his thick Puerto Rican accent, only half joking.

Much to the chagrin of the wireless service provider industry, Ortiz propelled himself into the national spotlight when he drafted state legislation that proposed to ban drivers from using mobile phones while behind the wheel.

“That was my rookie issue,” said Ortiz, a Democrat representing Brooklyn. “Every member was laughing at me saying the bill would get killed before departure.”

It almost did. In four years, the legislation never made it out of the Assembly Transportation Committee. Finally, in 2001, despite heavy lobbying from the wireless industry, New York became the first state to ban drivers from using mobile phones, thanks in large part to Ortiz's tenacity.

“My passion, persistence and perseverance is what gets me to win my battles,” said Ortiz, speaking about a hundred words per minute. “My heart told me to do the right thing.”

Ortiz has a reputation for never giving up. At age 10 he circulated a petition requesting the governor of Puerto Rico to support the formation of a baseball league by donating balls, gloves, bats and other equipment. The governor granted Ortiz's request.

When he moved to the U.S. in 1980, Ortiz could not speak a word of English, yet he graduated from New York City's Boricua College in 1983 with a bachelor of science degree in business administration. In 1986 he received his Master's degree in public administration from New York University, and after working as a member of several grassroots political organizations, Ortiz was elected as an assemblyman in 1994.

“I got involved in politics with the understanding that I would not sit there and be handcuffed,” Ortiz said. “I'm here to work for the people, and that means taking on very controversial issues. And you know what? If that's what needs to be done, I'm going to do it. But I'll do my homework first.”

Cell phones and driver distraction caught Ortiz's attention in 1996 when he saw a woman driving in front of him hit a pole. He ran to her car asking her what happened. She said she was talking on her cell phone and not paying attention. That prompted Ortiz to take his concerns public, and he was bombarded with calls from constituents with stories of how they were crippled or handicapped from accidents involving distracted drivers on cell phones.

The media began paying attention when carriers started questioning why legislators in New York were singling out wireless handsets. Ortiz and his fellow lawmakers brought in experts — representatives from the wireless industry and people who were involved in wireless-related vehicular accidents. Ortiz personally addressed the audience in session.

“No one was in a position to debate me when I brought up merit, public safety and quality of life. That's how I won.”

The wireless industry should be on the lookout again. Ortiz plans to continually call on the federal government to require individual states to enact legislation banning drivers from using cell phones. He also plans to personally visit state legislators to convince them to support bills in their own states.

Ortiz was recently part of the National Conference of State Legislatures, which created a working group of lawmakers and representatives from the wireless industry and safety agencies. The NCSL issued a report suggesting that laws banning mobile phone use by drivers should be implemented at the state level, not the national level, if they are enacted at all.

“[Ortiz] obviously has a lot to say, and he was very vocal at our meetings,” said Matt Sundeen, program principal for NCSL's transportation program. “From the industry's point of view, people felt these devices shouldn't be singled out. That was the basic sticking point.”

With the pressure Ortiz plans to apply, he believes the federal government may soon come up with legislation that is similar to seatbelt laws, which included provisions for states to mandate driver compliance in return for federal funds. But a similar bill sponsored by U.S. Sen. Jon Corzine, D-N.J., and U.S. Rep. Gary Ackerman, D-N.Y., has been at a standstill since it was introduced last year. And wireless carriers say they are pumping millions into campaigns promoting driver safety.

Still, the lack of evidence that mobile phones are to blame in many accidents is keeping other states from enacting legislation. Only about 17 states are beginning to track accidents and cell phones, and there are questions about the reliability of data and what it really means, said Sundeen.

“A lot of states don't want to do it yet,” lamented Ortiz. “They say they don't have enough evidence that it's dangerous and kills people. Most of the time you see legislators acting on issues only if a relative or someone has died. Why do we have to wait for a wake-up call for that?”

Ortiz is hoping the country's wake-up call will come in the form of results from a year-long study the New York State Department of Transportation plans to issue in late 2002 exploring the role mobile phones play in accidents. The report also will address other indicators such as whether accidents happened because the driver was putting on makeup or tuning the radio. Ortiz is confident the study will find a major correlation between mobile phone use in cars and accidents.

“Once the report is done,” Ortiz said, “I will continue my crusade by going to states where members have already introduced bills and make them believe they should do it today.”