Texting While Driving Will Be Illegal in Missouri Starting Next Month

Bluetooth and hands-free talk-to-text will still be allowed

Jul 11, 2023 at 10:51 am

Put down your phones! Texting and driving will soon be illegal in Missouri.

Come late August, you could actually get in trouble for using your phone while driving.

Missouri Governor Mike Parson signed a bill into law last week that bans most phone use from behind the wheel, making Missouri one of the last states to outright ban texting while driving. Current law only prohibits drivers under 21 from using their phone.

The new law takes effect August 28, but police will only enforce it with warnings for the first year and a half as the law is in its "education period." Police will start pulling drivers over for citations in 2025.

The ban does not apply when drivers are at legal stops such as stop signs and traffic lights. And no one can be stopped, inspected or detained solely because of a violation of the new law. Drivers will only be punished for phone use if they're caught doing so while committing another traffic offense.

A first offense would result in a fine of $150, a second $250. Persistently stubborn drivers who can't pry their goldfish brains away from their screens would have to pay $500.

So no texting, changing a song or typing a location into your GPS while you're operating a moving vehicle. Unless you're using Bluetooth or talk-to-text, which will still be legal.