IOWA -
Life without a driver's license wouldn't be easy, but now if you break one of Iowa's newly changed laws you could lose your license for up to a year.
It's called the "Move Over Law" and it just changed July 1st.
Iowa State Patrol Trooper Vince Kurtz is in his car patrolling Siouxland nearly every day, but the times he's out of his car can be the most dangerous.
"It's something that we think about every time we get out of the car," said Trooper Kurtz.
His safety is one of the reasons for Iowa's "Move Over Law," and now if you break it, it could cost you more than just a fine.
"If you're not paying attention you can be looking at a 90 day suspension of your license," said Trooper Kurtz.
If someone gets hurt when you break the law now you could pay a $500 fine and lose your license for 180 days.
If someone dies that fine goes up to $1,000, and you won't be driving for one year.
A high price for not paying attention behind the wheel.
"A lot of people take it for granted that just because you're driving, it's wasted time, and they think that they should be able to do something else," said Trooper Kurtz. "And that's really where the distraction issue comes in, which is the root cause of a lot of the problems that we see on the road."
Staying safe on the road boils down to two things: having control of your vehicle, and keeping a proper rate of speed.
You should always slow down and move over when you come across emergency or maintenance vehicles on the road.
Doing those two things will go a long way to keeping you behind the wheel and keeping folks like Trooper Kurtz safe.
"Whether you're a State Trooper or County Deputy or Police Officer, each officer wants to go home at the end of their shift," said Trooper Kurtz.
As a driver it's your responsibility to know what's right and wrong every time we get behind the wheel, and if you do something wrong you can lose your license.
If you'd like to learn more about Iowa's "Move Over Law," you can find all the information you need to know here: http://www.iowadot.gov/rules/rulesoftheroad.htm
