People using hand-held phones while driving in California may be fined up to $50 once Senate Bill 1613 is approved.

The bill, if approved by the governor, will ban drivers from using hand-held phones not in hands-free mode. Senator Joe Simitian who is an advocate of this bill says that having drivers pay up fines is better than having drivers and their passengers risk getting involved in accidents.

Other states that have already implemented this law include Washington, D.C., New Jersey, Connecticut and New York.

There are senators though who did not vote positively on this bill, splitting votes 21-14. According to Sen. Kevin Murray, passing such bill will not solve problems regarding traffic accidents. He believes that there are other distractions that cause these accidents, ranging from cell phones to talking with passengers and eating.

And senators are not the only ones opposing this bill - even Sprint Nextel has opposed the legislation, as it believes this bill is just singling out a type of distraction instead of addressing an entire issue.

However, those fighting for the passing of Senate Bill 1613 still believe that having two hands on the wheel is better than having just one while the other hand is busy holding a phone to the driver's ear. Bill 1613 will make it an infraction punishable by up to $50 on subsequent offenses.

Emergency calls though would be exempted from this law.