(The Center Square) – Michigan students could soon join others around the country in a growing trend of limiting cellphone use at school.

The House of Representatives could vote soon on a proposal to require public schools to develop a cellphone use policy that prohibits use at different times for elementary, middle and high school students.

Rep. Mark Tisdale, R-Rochester Hills, started the ban process last year, but the legislation never got a hearing. This year, it recently passed the House Committee on Education and Workforce with seven Republicans and one Democrat voting for it. The lone no vote came from a Republican.

“It leaked out relatively early in this calendar that the governor was going to make it a priority, and she did,” Tisdale told The Center Square. “I had the bill ready to go and refiled it. What’s important about this is Michigan is now like 42nd or 43rd nationally in education. The lack of proficiency in reading and basic math is very disturbing. The typical teen will get 200-300 notifications a day. They are basically creating addicts. This is an addictive device with addictive social media applications. Why would you allow an addict to carry around the thing they are addicted to in school?”

There is similar legislation in the Senate that would only require schools to develop a policy that would seek to limit, rather than establish, parameters of the policy as Tisdale’s does.

Tisdale’s bill requires policies for elementary and middle schools to nearly ban phones at all times, including instructional times, breaks between classes, lunch and recess.

The high school ban would only be during instructional time.

Exceptions for both would include medically necessary devices, district-owned devices, use for instructional purposes, use for lesson-specific assignments and for special education programs.

“Michigan has 886 school districts,” Tisdale said. “If you were to wait for 886 school districts to design, implement and enforce their own policies, I think you will be waiting a long time. Education professionals want to know they have support from the state.”

While not specifically opposing the bill, David Randels, executive director of government relations, education policy and research at Oakland Schools, called the issue complex and raised concerns about parents and students being able to communicate during the school day in emergencies.

“One of the first concerns raised – both personally and in conversations with superintendents – was the need for students to be able to contact parents or guardians in emergencies,” Randels testified. “We appreciate that the drafting process remained open to this feedback and that these concerns were taken seriously. As school leaders continue to navigate the complex intersection of technology, student wellbeing, and classroom management, we believe that state-level discussions must reflect the diversity of perspectives and operational realities across Michigan’s school districts.”

Illinois, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Virginia, Maine, Colorado and Ohio all have either established some type of cellphone ban in schools or are in the midst of debating legislation on the issue.

Ohio is working on its second piece of legislation. The first, passed last year, required districts to create policies, but not all schools established bans.

On Wednesday, the Ohio Senate passed a bill that would completely ban the use in schools. The House is expected to take up the measure soon.

Also, last month freshman Virginia Democratic U.S. Rep. Eugene Vindman introduced the Unplugged Act, which the lawmaker describes as the “first step in restoring quality education” by removing cellphones from classrooms.

If approved, the legislation would “require state educational agencies to implement policies prohibiting the use or possession” of students’ cellphones in public schools “during school hours, and for other purposes.”