Lea Rae Stewart didn’t see the large chunk of ice fly into the air.

But she did see it come crashing down — onto her windshield.

“There was no time to react; it was just there … ka-boom!” said Stewart, of Oakland. “I didn’t see it fall off the car. The wind must have carried it and there was this big bang.”

The ice chunk that had been launched from another vehicle didn’t go through the windshield of Stewart’s Jeep, but it left a large spider-web-type crack. She was unharmed.

It was 8:20 a.m. Tuesday, and Stewart was driving on Route 202. A volunteer driver for the Kennebec Valley Community Action Program, she had just dropped off a client and was heading to Winthrop to get another client.

She was driving about 50 mph when the ice chunk struck. Stewart pulled over and called her husband for help, and later took her vehicle to Portland Glass in Waterville. Her windshield was replaced for about $200.

For Stewart, the experience is a perfect example in support of a proposed bill that would require motorists to clear debris, such as ice and snow, from their vehicles or face fines.

“I support the bill 100 percent,” Stewart said. “Based on my experience, I feel we should make vehicles as safe as possible for other people. It could have been an accident, a chain reaction if other cars were around.”

The proposed bill was introduced by Rep. Jane Knapp, R-Gorham, and drew criticism during its first legislative hearing late last month. The House Transportation Committee is scheduled to hold a work session on the bill Friday.

In its initial draft, “An Act To Require That Motor Vehicles Be Clear of Solid Precipitation When Operated on Public Ways” called for requiring that vehicles traveling more than 40 mph be clear of ice or frozen snow. The bill proposed $250 fines for a first offense and $500 for a second or subsequent offenses.

Knapp said last week that the bill “has resulted in many people talking to each other and to me about how the situation of frozen precipitation has affected them.”

“For my e-mails, half the e-mails say they agree that it is a safety issue for citizens who drive,” Knapp said. “The other half of the e-mails do not want government regulation.”

Several organizations, such as the Maine Motor Transport Association, are against the measure because of the burden it would place on truckers.

The Maine Chiefs of Police Association is soliciting feedback from the state’s police chiefs, and has raised some concerns.

Waterville Police Chief Joseph Massey said he’s not outright opposed to the proposed bill — he thinks such flying debris can be hazardous — but he’s concerned that the proposed language is too broad and subjective.

For instance, officers would need to be using radar to measure whether a vehicle is going faster than 40 mph, Massey said. Otherwise they would have to estimate, which would be “very subjective,” he said.

Also, motorists could argue over what constitutes “solid precipitation,” Massey said. The bill describes it as snow, ice, hail and sleet.

Massey said he’s also unsure whether exceptions would be made for “handicapped folks who might have a hard time removing snow and ice from their car,” and truck drivers.

“It’s very subjective and very open to arguments,” Massey said. “I can just see there are a lot of issues here. It would make it difficult to prosecute, I would think.”

According to published reports, lawmakers on the Legislature’s Transportation Committee and others have questioned the practicality of the proposed law, with Sen. Bill Diamond, D-Windham, calling it “so nebulous” and “a tremendous burden” on drivers.

Based on the feedback at the first hearing, Knapp said she will make changes to the bill. The fine for the first offense would be $75, instead of $250, and vehicles would be subject to the law when traveling 45 mph or more on a public highway.

Also, no one would be cited during a snowstorm, she said.

“Other businesses require that their drivers clear or clean off the vehicles before the vehicle is driven,” Knapp said.

Just before he replaced Stewart’s windshield Tuesday, Eric Roberts, manager of Portland Glass in Waterville, said he has “mixed feelings” about the bill.

“We don’t have many people come in for that,” Roberts said, referring to Stewart’s experience. “Not as many as you might think.”