It’s illegal to use a cell phone to text while driving in Alabama but supporters of a bill to expand the law say the texting ban is weak and hard to enforce.

A bill approved today in an Alabama House committee would make it illegal to hold a phone while driving, with some exceptions.

The House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee approved the bill by Rep. Allen Farley, R-McCalla, after testimony from a woman who lost her daughter to a distracted driving accident last year. The committee approval puts the bill in line for consideration by the full House.

Farley, who is retired from a career in law enforcement, has said he believes the proposal will save lives by reducing the problem of distracted driving.

Sen. Jim McClendon, R-Springville, has introduced a similar bill in the Senate. Both lawmakers have said their proposal is based on a law that took effect in Georgia last year.

Both bills include exceptions for law enforcement and emergency responders, and for using a cellphone as a navigational device.

Drivers would pay a $50 fine for a first violation, $100 for a second and $150 for a third.

The committee approved the bill on a voice vote without opposition. In addition to Farley, several other law enforcement officials on the committee said they supported the bill. They said it would strengthen the current law, which bans texting. At least one committee member said that the no-texting law is difficult to enforce.

Michelle Lunsford spoke to the committee about the death of her daughter, Camryn Callaway, to a distracted driving accident in February 2018.

Lunsford said Camryn, who was a student at Thompson High School in Alabaster and would have turned 18 today, was using her phone to record a birthday message for a friend when she drove under an 18-wheeler on Interstate 65.

“That’s a huge wake-up call when you have to bury your own child for something that is 100 percent preventable,” Lunsford said. She showed the committee photos of her daughter and of Camryn’s 2004 Ford Mustang that was destroyed in the crash.

Lunsford said a “hands-free” driving law is what’s needed to help prevent accidents like Camryn’s.

“Our current law is weak and unenforceable," Lunsford said. "Police and law enforcement have told me that it is nearly impossible to enforce.”

Farley said Camryn’s accident prompted him to propose the bill. Farley said one of his granddaughters attended school with Camryn. Farley added an amendment to the bill today naming it after Camryn.