A proposal by the government of the US state, Rhode Island to ban using a mobile phone while driving was intended to have one other side effect - a windfall in driving fines. However, the estimated US$6.2 million in fines which had been expected to boost state coffers this year and next has now been reduced - to a mere $437,000.
State Budget Officer Rosemary Booth Gallogly said the revised figures are waiting for a more in-depth analysis. The original figure was based on an estimate of 100,000 fines per year, a figure which is now looking wildly optimistic.
"With a budget that has so much pain, we need to make sure itÃ's as correct as possible," House Majority Leader Gordon D. Fox said through a spokesman. "We need to rely on numbers that are reliable and accurate and not just a guess."
Of course, the other side to the story is that the ban, if implemented would be more likely to be complied with by drivers than originally expected.
Posted to the site on 4th February 2008
Posted to: www.cellular-news.com/story/29049.php