INDIANAPOLIS – House members Wednesday considered making teens wait longer to get their driver’s licenses in an effort to reduce deaths by increasing their experience and maturity behind the wheel.

The legislation also includes a prohibition on teens using cell phones to communicate, including texting, while driving.

Sen. Travis Holdman, R-Markle, estimated that Senate Bill 16 would reduce fatal teen driving crashes by 40 percent, or save about 60 lives a year.

In 2007, 153 Hoosier teens were killed in driving accidents, and motor vehicle crashes continue to be the No. 1 killer of teens statewide and nationwide.

"It doesn’t have anything to do with how smart our kids are – it has to do with their maturity," he said. "It’s all about saving lives."

Representatives from the insurance industry, medical profession and others testified in support of the bill, which passed the Senate before but never made it through the House.

Here are the major provisions of the bill:

•A requirement of 50 hours of supervised driving with a licensed instructor or licensed driver at least 25 years old to get a license.

•Teens who take driver’s education could not get their license until 16 years and 6 months – an increase of five months over current law. Teens who don’t take driver’s education have to wait six more months to get their license, at age 17.

•Extending the time period restricting passengers in cars with new teen drivers from three months to six months, with an exception for siblings.

•A ban on the use of cell phones or any type of telecommunications device while operating a vehicle until age 18. Similar bans exist in at least 17 other states.

Indianapolis mother Angela Pinna told the House Transportation Committee about the death of her 6-year-old daughter, Jessica, in 2006. She was killed when a 16-year-old driver swerved into oncoming traffic to avoid slowed traffic in front of him, slamming head-on into the car Pinna was driving.

"Teenagers don’t have full ability to do what they think they can do in a car," she said.

Pinna noted she is tormented by the possibility that if this law had been in place several years ago her daughter might still be alive.

The committee did not take a vote on the bill, instead sending it to a subcommittee for further debate. Several members on the panel are concerned about the affordability and accessibility of driver’s education classes for teens.

Right now, only half of teen drivers take the course. Some public schools as well as commercial entities still offer the training. The cost ranges between $350 and $450, according to testimony.

"I think you are condemning a lot of children to wait until they are 17 to get their driver’s license," said Rep. Vern Tincher, D-Terre Haute.

But Bob Spolyar, representing State Farm Insurance, encouraged legislators to move forward now.

"You have a value judgment," he said. "Are you going to let 50 die until everyone has access to driver training?"

nkelly@jg.net