Use your cell phone the next time you hop in the car, and you could face a $285 fine. Abuse the carpool lane, and the state may bill you in excess of $1,000. Drive on the shoulder, and it may cost you $450.

These false claims included in an e-mail hoax began in California before surfacing in Georgia in July 2007.

The information began circulating in Georgia in July, said Jim Shuler, public relations director for the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety.

“We worked very hard to stamp this thing out in Georgia,” Shuler said. “It’s been disclaimed all over the state.”

The e-mail’s journey to the inboxes of Georgia drivers began when a variant of the e-mail was sent to Texans in June, according to snopes.com.

Efforts to clarify the rumor lasted about a week, he said. Shuler called the information “bogus” and said he did not want to create “more confusion” by addressing the false claims.

According to Shuler, the attempts to smother the rumor included a disclaimer on their Web site, gahighwaysafety.org, and numerous interviews for TV, radio and print to ensure the public knew the information was false.

The University Panhellenic Council published an article in its September newsletter, “In the Know,” that cited the erroneous information as fact.

“It was a hoax e-mail that somebody sent out,” said Leigh Harris , public relations chair for Panhellenic Council. Harris said one of their members called the Athens-Clarke County Department of Transportation and was informed that the claims were false.

“We will print a retraction in October to let people know it was a hoax,” she said.

According to Shuler, the e-mail appeared factual to readers because the author used the name of a state official and state agency.

Since the hoax surfaced in July, Shuler said the GOHS “has not seen any problems since.”

According to The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Web site, Georgia is one of 14 states that prohibits school bus drivers from using cell phones while driving.

No state bans all types of cell phone use, according to the GOHS Web site, because of insufficient evidence that more vehicular accidents occur due to cell phone usage.

DeKalb County became the first county in Georgia to sanction drivers involved in car accidents while speaking on their cellular phones, according to a newsletter published by motorists.org.

Debra Arnold, deputy clerk of commission for the ACC government, said no such sanctions exist yet in Athens.

“As far as I know, we don’t have any word on that.”