When it comes to cleaning snow off a vehicle, some drivers prefer to do the bare minimum and let the wind take care of the rest.

But next year police may have the power to pull over vehicles that are not cleared of snow and ice.

The state Senate recently passed a bill, Senate Bill 435, that would require drivers to clear their vehicles of snow and ice 24 hours after a snow event. If the bill is passed by the state House, failing to do so could carry a $25-$75 fine.

State Sen. Lisa Boscola, D-Northampton, introduced the bill inspired by a woman’s tragic death in 2005 in Nesquehoning.

Christine Lambert was driving her family’s SUV through the borough when a piece of ice fell off a tractor trailer passing in the opposite direction, fatally injuring her. Following Lambert’s death, her family members challenged Boscola to come up with a way to prevent the tragedy from befalling other families like them.

“They had called me and told me what had happened, and said ‘this should never happen to anybody,” Boscola recalled.

At the time of Lambert’s death, there was no law in Pennsylvania holding drivers responsible for snow and ice which dislodged from their vehicle. Boscola changed that by successfully proposing legislation that created a $1,000 fine for a driver whose vehicle sheds snow and ice that causes death or serious bodily injury.

Senate Bill 435 increases that penalty to $1,500.

She said she has continued to push for a bill that would require drivers to clear snow because she wants to be proactive against incidents like the one that took the life of Lambert. Oftentimes, drivers will not even know that a piece of ice dislodged from their vehicle. The truck involved in the incident which killed Lambert was never located.

“It’s about raising awareness, and reminding them that look, this is very dangerous, and people die on our roadways when you’re not removing your ice and snow,” she said.

Boscola said she hears from numerous Pennsylvanians who share their stories about snow and ice damaging their vehicle after flying off another vehicle. She’s even experienced it herself during drives from her district to Harrisburg.

After reintroducing her legislation multiple times she resorted to amending other bills to try to hold drivers accountable for the snow on their vehicles.

She credited the Lambert family for testifying in Harrisburg, and encouraging her to get the bill passed.

“There’s nothing more poignant than when a family talks about a tragedy. It’s one thing talking about a bill, but when you put a face to it, it was hard for the committee not to say ‘we have to do something about this’ ” she said.

The bill will now go to the state House for consideration.