Plan to 'limit’ cellphones in schools passes Michigan Senate. Is it tough enough?

• Michigan Senate approves bill requiring schools to limit student cellphone in classrooms
• Unlike a House bill that requires a total ban, Senate plan would allow school districts to determine the extent of the restrictions
• Gov. Gretchen Whitmer wants Michigan to join at least 18 other states that already have school cellphone laws

LANSING — There appears to be broad support among Michigan lawmakers to limit cellphone use in Michigan’s K-12 schools — but a big and unresolved question looms: How strictly to try and curtail the practice through state law.

Michigan’s Democratic-led Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that would require public school districts and academies to adopt policies that “seek to limit” cellphone use by students in class.

“These policies must aim to limit cellphone use during school hours and reduce distractions in classroom settings, and the policies must be enforced,” sponsoring Sen. Dayna Polehanki, D-Livonia, said ahead of the vote.

Many Michigan schools are already adopting cellphone policies on their own, as a growing body of research shows the presence of smartphones can damage student learning. 

While some schools prohibit phones from the building entirely, Avondale Middle School in Rochester Hills has required students to keep the devices in magnetically sealed bags during the day, and educators have been pleased with the results.

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• School cellphone bans are spreading. Is Michigan next?

The Senate bill approved Tuesday in a 28-9 vote stops short of mandating cellphone bans. Instead, it would provide a fair degree of flexibility for individual districts and schools — it’d remain up to them to decide how tough to be. 

“I believe that each school district should be able to provide a policy that's right for the school community they service,” Polehanki said.

But a separate proposal advancing in the state House is more explicit: School boards must ban phone use during class, lunch, recess and in the hallways between classes during middle school, and during instructional time for high schoolers, with the option to be more strict.

The Senate plan would require schools to allow exemptions for cellphones in emergency situations, medically necessary devices and those used to accommodate students with disabilities. 

Critics contend the Senate proposal is not tough enough. 

Sen. Lana Theis, R-Brighton, called the legislation “too permissive” and urged legislators to hold out for a bill with stronger language that would force school districts to reduce cellphone use.

Sen. Rick Outman, R-Six Lakes, said parents have “a lot of good reasons” to want to stay in contact with their students, and said school groups told him a strict mandate would avoid the fight.

“The problem with implementing more strict policies is (school boards) take a lot of heat from a lot of parents,” said Outman, who was one of nine Republicans to vote against the measure. 

Michigan lawmakers considered school cellphone legislation last year but did not finalize a plan by the end of the term. In February, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer called for a new law during her State of the State Address. 

One potential fault line this term: Polehanki said she would not vote for any legislation that doesn’t offer phone access in the event of an emergency — an exception the House bill does not currently allow. 

The number of states with school cellphone restrictions is growing quickly. At least 18 currently ban or limit use in classrooms, including Indiana and Ohio, where legislators last year passed bipartisan laws requiring school districts to establish policies.

In Ohio, school policies must "emphasize that student cellphone use be as limited as possible during school hours” and "reduce cellphone-related distractions in classroom settings." 

Some studies have found links between heavy cellphone use and teen depression, but there is no definitive consensus and some parents have advocated for continued access as a line of communication in emergency situations.