Motor vehicles; prohibiting use of certain devices while driving. Effective date.

SB 57 amends Oklahoma law to prohibit manually composing, sending, or reading text messages while driving a motor vehicle, and to ban holding hand-held cell phones. It reduces the fine for violations to $5 plus court costs (previously $100), with fines distributed to specific state programs like public safety, victim services, and courthouse security. The law allows hands-free or voice-operated technology use and permits exceptions for emergency calls to first responders, hospitals, or law enforcement. It directly affects drivers operating vehicles on Oklahoma roads and aligns municipal ordinances with state penalties. The bill also clarifies that traffic points won’t be added to licenses for these violations.