Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today outlined federal guidance for prohibiting commercial drivers license holder from texting while behind the wheel, making good on a promise he made during a first of its kind Distracted Driving Summit held in Washington, D.C., in September.

“We want the drivers of big rigs and buses and those who share the roads with them to be safe,” said LaHood in a written statement. “This is an important safety step and we will be taking more to eliminate the threat of distracted driving.”

A DOT spokesman later said that the FMCSA Regulatory Guidance will drive a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and a public comment period. If a final rule is published, it would be enforced by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Commercial vehicle operators, including some school bus drivers subject to FMCSA guidelines, could face fines of up to $2,750 per offense.

The guidance appears to only prohibit texting and to continue to allow commercial drivers to continue using other "electronic dispatching tools and fleet management systems" such as two-way radios, which many school bus drivers rely upon for instant and critical communication with dispatchers. FMCSA will address the use of these other electronic devices during the rulemaking process. And while FMCSA "believes safety-conscious fleet managers would neither allow nor require their drivers to type or read messages while driving," it added that it will consider any appropriate regulatory action to address any issues that might arise.

Research unveiled at the Distracted Driving Summit shows that drivers who send and receive text messages take their eyes off the road for an average of 4.6 seconds out of every 6 seconds while looking at their electronic mobile device. At speeds of 55 miles per hour, a vehicle could travel the length of a football field, including the end zones, with the drivers eyes not focused on the road.

Last week, the National Safety Council released data that shows that approximately 28 percent of crashes each year are caused by drivers distracted by cell phone calls and texting.

FMCSA also said drivers who text are more than 20 times more likely to crash than non-distracted drivers. Because of the safety risks associated with the use of electronic devices while driving, FMCSA is also working on additional regulatory measures that will be announced in the coming months.

“Our regulations will help prevent unsafe activity within the cab,” said FMCSA Administrator Anne Ferro. “We want to make it crystal clear to operators and their employers that texting while driving is the type of unsafe activity that these regulations are intended to prohibit.”

Shortly after the Distracted Driving Summit last fall, President Obama signed an Executive Order prohibiting all federal employees from texting while driving government-owned vehicles or operating government-owned equipment. That ban went into effect on Dec. 30. Teen drivers have also been a target of distracted driving campaigns.