Create an Interest Group Template

Student Name: Suzie Q. Student

Date: 11/14/2022

Your Interest Group

In approximately 6-8 sentences, name your interest group, describe the issue or cause
it supports or opposes, and why.

END IT (End Distracted Driving In Texas) wants to end distracted driving in Texas by 1)
increasing the penalties for texting while driving and 2) by pressuring local police to better
enforce the law. According to the Texas Department of Transportation, almost 110,00 traffic
accidents in Texas in 2016 involved distracted driving, resulting in 455 deaths and 3,087
serious injuries. In 2017, the Texas state legislature outlawed reading, writing, or sending text
messages while driving throughout the state. According to the law, violators can be fined $25 -
$99 for a first offense. Subsequent offenses carry a fine up to $200. The law also states that
“the behavior must be committed in the presence of or within the view of a peace officer or
established by other evidence” (Texas DOT, 2017).

END IT believes that the current penalties for texting while driving are not severe enough to
discourage Texans from texting while driving. Moreover, END IT believes that local law
enforcement is not currently serious enough about enforcing the law.

What type of interest group is it?

The Types of Interest Groups tutorial can help you answer this prompt.

END IT is a single-issue, public interest group. It promotes intangible collective goods,

including highway and public safety.

Goals

What are your specific policy goals? Specify at least 2.

END IT’s first goal is to change the current law in Texas to increase the fines for distracted
driving. We would like the law to apply a $300-$500 fine for a first offense, and a

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$1,000-$2,000 fine for subsequent offenses. The hope is that bigger fines would communicate
the seriousness of the law, and make drivers think twice before picking up their phones to
text.

A second goal is to place pressure on police in towns and cities across the state to increase
their surveillance and enforcement of the current distracted driving law.

Which level(s) of government and which government branch(es) will you target, and
why?

States are primarily responsible for making public safety laws, like laws about distracted
driving. To achieve the first goal, therefore, we would target the Texas state legislature, which
is responsible for making law and has the power to change the statute.

We would not target a specific branch of government to achieve the second goal; rather, a
public pressure campaign would likely be more successful. However, part of this public
pressure campaign could take the form of encouraging town and city residents to contact their
local elected officials, administrators, and police departments.

Is there one political party that might be more receptive to your goals? Why or why
not?

Historically, distracted driving laws in Texas have been supported by members of both major
political parties. The sponsor of the bill that eventually became the law was Representative
Tom Craddick, a Republican. Although the former Republican governor Rick Perry vetoed
similar legislation in the past, it was finally signed into law by Greg Abbot, the current
Republican governor (Mansoor, 2017). For this reason, although the Republican Party is
typically less supportive than the Democratic Party of laws that regulate individual behavior,
we do not see this as a partisan issue. We believe that members of both parties in Texas are
generally supportive of distracted driving laws.

What barriers exist to meeting your goals? Specify 2 or more.

Examples might include the free rider problem, lack of popular support, lack of political
support, financial barriers, or others.

There are some barriers to meeting our goals. In general, popular support for the issue is
high. Most Americans would likely agree that texting and driving is dangerous and increases
the chances of traffic accidents that can result in death or serious injury. However, the reality
is that many people still do it, so far fewer people may support taking action to increase the
penalties. This may contribute to the free rider problem.

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In terms of political support, it took several years for enough members of the Texas legislature
to agree on the version of the distracted driving bill that eventually passed. Moreover, Texas
was one of the last states in the nation to pass this kind of law, so that suggests that there
may not be a lot of strong political will to revisit the law (Mansoor, 2017).

Regarding financial barriers, END IT is most likely to be a grassroots organization, rather than
being funded by a wealthy corporation, trade association, or other groups of individuals with
deep financial pockets. Therefore, fundraising would be another important barrier to
overcome.

How might your group overcome each of those barriers?

As mentioned, as a public interest group, END IT is most likely to be a grassroots

organization. The public at large is generally familiar with and supportive of bans on distracted
driving. The increased risk to public safety is well-known, and 48 of the 50 states have passed
laws to ban it. However, without any major sources of funding, we would need to draw on the
energy and resources of a large and/or vocal membership to drive change. This is especially
true if we were to create a public pressure campaign that is effective in persuading local police
across the state to increase their focus on texting while driving. So, building a large
membership base is an important strategy for overcoming the lack of political will and the
money needed to drive change.

Membership

Who will you target for membership and how will you grow it?

To grow membership, END IT could target a couple of specific groups. For starters, since this
is a state-based interest group, it would make sense to focus membership efforts only within
the state of Texas. From there, END IT could target 1) individuals who have been directly
affected by the issue of distracted driving, such as those who have been injured by distracted
drivers, or whose friends or families have been, and 2) parents of teenagers who are about to
become licensed drivers. As a grassroots interest group, EnDD IT should also make use of
social media to grow public awareness of its goals, which could also help to grow
membership. The larger the membership, the better, because members are needed to
pressure their lawmakers and spread the message within their communities.

What sorts of incentives can your interest group provide?

The Factors that Influence the Power of Interest Groups tutorial can help you answer
this prompt.

END IT would potentially provide all three types of incentives, which could help grow
membership and overcome the free rider problem: solidarity incentives, since this is a

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community-based initiative; purposive incentives, since the organization is advocating for an
important collective good; and material incentives. Material incentives could take the form of
bumper stickers, a monthly newsletter, tote bags, or other items that members could receive
in exchange for donations. These material incentives could help raise funds for the
organization and, at the same time, help to grow public awareness of the interest group.

Actions

Choose two inside lobbying approaches and two outside lobbying approaches that
your interest group will use. Explain how each will contribute to the goals.

You can choose from the menu provided (below), or brainstorm your own ideas.
The Interest Group Strategies tutorial can also help you answer this prompt.

END IT will use a combination of lobbying and electioneering to advance its interests.

It’s unlikely for the organization to have the funds to hire a professional lobbyist. However,
because one of the group’s goals is to change to the current law (by increasing the penalties
for texting while driving), it will be important to use inside lobbying tactics that can bring about
that policy change.

One inside lobbying approach it will use is to submit draft legislation to state congresspersons
who are known to be friendly to the cause, and who are likely to support the idea of increased
fines. It will also be important to build relationships with Texas state legislators in the House
and in the Senate who serve on the Transportation Committees in each chamber, since any
bills to amend the current law will need to pass through committee first. The organization can
also conduct and provide research to congresspersons that show how widespread texting
while driving actually is, to persuade them that the current law is not having its intended effect.
It could also provide data that shows how many accidents, injuries, and deaths still occur in
the state as a result of distracted driving.

The outside lobbying strategies that END IT will use relate to building grassroots support,
which is critical to achieving the second stated goal of the interest group: to pressure local
police around the state to better enforce the distracted driving law. By growing grassroots
support, state lawmakers are also more likely to find the political will to change the law, if they
believe it’s what their constituents want.

One specific outside lobbying approach will be to spread awareness through social media and
the Internet. This includes building a website for the interest group that can house research
and information on the topic, personal testimonials, data, newsletters, calendars of events,
and more. Some of the organization’s funds would be well spent by hiring a web designer and
also a social media manager, who could help END IT build its internet and social media
presence on platforms like YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter. Social media is proven to be an
effective way for grassroots organizations to grow their membership and spread their
message.

Another outside lobbying approach will be to publish ratings of elected officials, political

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 candidates for state office, and law enforcement in towns and communities. This will help
voters to know where their current representatives stand on the issue, and help them easily
identify and select candidates in elections who share the goals of END IT. It will also help
END IT members in communities around the state know how seriously their local police
departments are enforcing the law. END IT could also encourage its members to contact their
local and state representatives to make their voices heard.

Inside Lobbying Outside Lobbying

Hire a professional lobbyist Hold protest demonstrations or rallies

Testify at congressional committee meetings Place stories or articles in the media

or before the full legislature

Provide research or information to Issue press releases

congresspersons

Meet with government officials Enter a coalition with other groups

Submit draft legislation to legislators Ask members to contact their representatives

File lawsuits or legal briefs (e.g., amicus Publish ratings of legislators, other elected
curiae briefs) officials, or political candidates

Try to influence agency or judicial Mold public opinion and spread awareness
appointments through social media

Donate to political campaigns Spearhead get-out-the-vote campaigns

REFERENCES

Mansoor, S. (2017, March 15). Texas House passes statewide ban on texting while driving. The
Texas Tribune. https://www.texastribune.org/2017/03/15/texting-driving/

Texas Department of Transportation. (2017, Sept. 1). New Statewide Law Prohibits Drivers from
Texting While Driving. https://www.txdot.gov/about/newsroom/statewide/2017/018-2017.html