WASHINGTON — The U.S. DOT has issued sample legislation to make it easier for state traffic officers to enforce the federal regulation banning truck drivers from texting while driving.

The sample state law, prepared by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, gives local officials authority to stop trucks whose drivers are seen texting from behind the wheel.

DOT Ray LaHood issued a regulatory guidance in January reinterpreting existing highway traffic rules banning the practice nation-wide for commercial drivers only.

However, law enforcement officials in the 31 states without their own anti-texting legislation speculated that the federal guidance would be unenforceable without a specific regulation rather than a reinterpretation of highway traffic laws already on the books.

Modeled after the Obama administration’s executive order directing federal employees not to text while driving government vehicles, the sample state law apparently fast-tracks jurisdictional enforcement authority.

"While there are many sources of driver distraction, there is heightened concern regarding the risks of texting-while-driving," states the federal guidance. "The act of composing, sending or reading text messages interrupts drivers’ cognitive attention, causes vision to be directed away from the road, and compromises manual control of the vehicle.

"Although laws alone will not fully resolve the problem, this sample language is offered as an important step in addressing the growing concern about driver distraction."

The DOT says that many of the texting laws are relatively new and have not been thoroughly evaluated. "However, considering the rapid emergence of the problem and the growing evidence showing the threat to the safety of all road users, safety advocates and state legislatures are compelled to move forward, basing texting legislation on the broad foundation of principles learned from seat belt laws, impaired driving statutes and similar legislative initiatives, while more specific scientific evidence is gathered."

This sample law reflects current circumstances, says DOT, but may be revised in the future to incorporate new research findings, address evolving technologies, or to harmonize with other legislation.

"In addition to enacting a texting-while-driving law, states may consider other steps to address the issue, including enhanced public awareness and law enforcement programs and improved police crash reports that document specific distractions involved in crashes."