No, North Carolina Did Not Pass a New "Hands-Free" Driving Law

PolitiFact rated the claim False. North Carolina House Speaker Destin Hall's office said flatly: "The 'Hands-Free NC Act' was never enacted by the General Assembly and is not in effect." Senate leadership said it was unaware of any such law having passed. ^[1]

The Facebook page is not affiliated with the North Carolina General Assembly, despite its name. ^[2]

The underlying bill, Senate Bill 526, was filed in March 2025 and would ban holding a phone while driving — with exceptions for emergencies, official duties, and integrated vehicle equipment — while explicitly allowing hands-free calls. It was referred to the Senate Rules and Operations Committee on March 26, 2025, and has not advanced since; it has never received a floor vote in either chamber. ^[3] State Sen. Jim Burgin, the bill's sponsor, told PolitiFact he regretted having to tell constituents his own proposal never became law. ^[1]

North Carolina's only current, enacted restriction bans drivers from sending text or email messages while driving — a narrower rule than the handheld-phone ban the fake post described. ^[1][2]

Nationally, 33 states plus Washington, D.C. currently ban handheld cellphone use for all drivers, and North Carolina is not one of them, according to the Governors Highway Safety Association. ^[4]