Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Calif. Bill Would Drive Pets Off Laps

Drivers would have to steer clear of distracting pals

By Peter Fearon, Newser Staff

Posted May 7, 2008 6:11 AM CDT

(Newser) – California legislators are pushing a bill banning pets from drivers' laps after a national study ranked pets, along with cell phones, among the leading causes of road distractions and a cause of thousands of accidents. A bill before the state legislature will impose a fine for driving while holding dogs, cats, or other live animals, reports the San Jose Mercury News.

"You have a potential major risk of an auto accident when you have a live pet that can be around your face, in the steering wheel, down on the floor under your feet," said an assemblyman. "I saw an individual with two dogs with their paws up in the open window in the back seat, and another dog in their lap. My goodness, folks."

A pet owner drives with her dog in the front seat. California is poised to ban pets from drivers' laps. (KRT Photos)

California is poised to ban pets from drivers' laps. (KRT Photos)

A pet car seat and suitcase design for safe car travel with pets. California is poised to ban pets from drivers laps. (AP Photo/MidnightPass.com)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

More Newser Stories

Calif. Billionaires Fight for $10B Tax Hike

Think Long Committee has the bucks to get measure on ballot, passed

(NEWSER) - A group of California billionaires is joining political insiders to put a $10 billion tax hike measure on the state ballot. Members of the Think Long Committee include billionaire Google chairman Eric Schmidt and philanthropist Eli Broad, as well as former governors Gray Davis and Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Condoleezza Rice. The group's plan is to boost tax revenue for education and to pay down the state's debt by relying on an "ideological hybrid" of ideas from both the right and the left, spokesman Nathan Gardels tells the San Francisco Chronicle . The proposal would lower California's personal income tax and sales tax rates, but impose a 5% tax on currently untaxed services such as legal work and accounting. Under the proposal, couples earning up to $45,000 would pay no state income tax; those earning up to $95,000 would pay 2%; and those earning more would pay 7.5%, with a 1% surcharge for Californians earning more than $1 million. More»

Arnie Gives First Speech Since Scandal

And the tan former 'governator' gets a standing ovation

(AP) - Arnold Schwarzenegger is making a comeback … for the second time? Or is it the third? We've lost track, but the former California governor made his first speech in the state yesterday since confirming in May that he fathered an out-of-wedlock son , the latest sign he's gradually maneuvering back into the public eye. Sporting a deep tan, he joked that he was running for president in 2012—of a bodybuilding association. Speaking for about 10 minutes before a business group at a downtown hotel, the moderate Republican warned about the dangers of political gridlock, telling the group that partisan division was choking progress in California and Washington. More»

Celeb Privacy Breach Costs UCLA Hospitals $865K

Britney Spears, Farah Fawcett, Arnold Schwarzenegger had files breached

(AP) - Years after hospital employees were accused of snooping into the medical records of celebrity patients, UCLA Health System agreed to pay an $865,000 settlement for potential violations of federal privacy laws. The settlement that UCLA reached with federal regulators Wednesday did not name the stars specifically involved. The investigation by the US Department of Health and Human Services revealed that workers repeatedly accessed patients' electronic health records between 2005 and 2008. In a statement yesterday, UCLA said it has taken steps over the past three years to retrain staff and strengthen its computer systems. More»

Mother of Terminator's Love Child ID'd

Mildred Baena lives outside LA with Arnold Schwarzenegger's son

(NEWSER) - The mother of Arnold Schwarzenegger's love child has been identified as long-time family housekeeper Mildred "Patty" Baena. Baena, now 50, had the former California governor's son some 10 years ago and lives as a single mom divorcée with the boy and her three other children outside Los Angeles, according to several publications. She quit working for Schwarzenegger and now-estranged wife Maria Shriver in January after close to 20 years with the couple. Her son is the spitting image of his dad, and looks like a young Conan, reports TMZ . She didn't tell Schwarzenegger he was her son's father until the boy was a toddler, say friends. More»

It's Splitsville for Schwarzenegger, Maria Shriver

They're 'amicably separating,' says power couple

(NEWSER) - Arnold Schwarzenegger and wife Maria Shriver are, ah, terminating their relationship. The power couple announced they're "amicably separating" after 25 years of marriage and four children. "This has been a time of great personal and professional transition for us. After a great deal of thought, discussion, and prayer, we came to this decision together," said a statement from the two. They don't plan to reveal other details, notes ABC News . Shriver, whose late mom was JFK's sister Eunice Kennedy Shriver, was an NBC News journalist when she fell for the Austrian muscle-man-turned-actor-turned-California-governor. More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

Calif. Bill Would Drive Pets Off Laps

Drivers would have to steer clear of distracting pals

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

pets • California • cell phones • Arnold Schwarzenegger • accident • driver distraction • Bill Maze • Department of Motor Vehicles

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

Calif. Billionaires Fight for $10B Tax Hike

Think Long Committee has the bucks to get measure on ballot, passed

Arnie Gives First Speech Since Scandal

And the tan former 'governator' gets a standing ovation

Celeb Privacy Breach Costs UCLA Hospitals $865K

Britney Spears, Farah Fawcett, Arnold Schwarzenegger had files breached

Mother of Terminator's Love Child ID'd

Mildred Baena lives outside LA with Arnold Schwarzenegger's son

It's Splitsville for Schwarzenegger, Maria Shriver

They're 'amicably separating,' says power couple

About Us

Site

Newser By Users

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?

Calif. Bill Would Drive Pets Off Laps

Drivers would have to steer clear of distracting pals

Bookmark & Share

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

pets • California • cell phones • Arnold Schwarzenegger • accident • driver distraction • Bill Maze • Department of Motor Vehicles

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

Calif. Billionaires Fight for $10B Tax Hike

Think Long Committee has the bucks to get measure on ballot, passed

Arnie Gives First Speech Since Scandal

And the tan former 'governator' gets a standing ovation

Celeb Privacy Breach Costs UCLA Hospitals $865K

Britney Spears, Farah Fawcett, Arnold Schwarzenegger had files breached

Mother of Terminator's Love Child ID'd

Mildred Baena lives outside LA with Arnold Schwarzenegger's son

It's Splitsville for Schwarzenegger, Maria Shriver

They're 'amicably separating,' says power couple

About Us

Site

Newser By Users

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?