Texting while driving is being studied for more serious penalty in Va.

Delegate Kaye Kory, a Fairfax Democrat, has proposed this type of legislation for the past several sessions. In January she is hoping to designate an annual “End Texting While Driving” day.

“I think the more attention paid to this, the better,” Ms. Kory said. “Now that D.C. and Maryland have got much more stringent laws about this than we have, it makes it even more important for us to move quickly.”

Sen. George Barker, also a Fairfax Democrat, said he has attempted to make texting while driving a primary offense.

“Right now, a cop can see you texting while driving and unless you’re breaking some other law, they can’t pull you over,” he said. “From my perspective that’s problematic. From my perspective it’s taken too long to get here.”

Mr. Barker said of all the opinions he hears from constituents, texting while driving is the most popular discussion topic.

“Everybody has their own personal experience,” he said. “They see it as exceedingly dangerous.”

Mr. Surovell said that some people are concerned that people could be accused of texting while driving based solely on the words of police officers. It also opens up the risk of cellphone seizures, he said.

“It’s not a clean issue. It gets a lot more complicated than a lot of people realize,” he said.

But Mr. Surovell expects something to happen in terms of policy. The question, he said, is what.

“Is texting reckless driving or something less serious?” he asked.

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