Companion bill pulls plug on privately owned electronic devices during school hours
BY: TIM CARPENTER. Kansas Reflector
TOPEKA — The Kansas House endorsed a $60 fine for motorists under 18 caught using a cellular telephone while driving through a school zone during periods of high pedestrian traffic and a House committee worked on a separate bill banning student use of privately owned electronic devices throughout regular school hours.
Both measures were testament to the scourge of distraction from personal cellphones, computers, tablets and texting devices tied to traffic accidents and lost focus on academics.
A bipartisan 86-30 majority voted Thursday to send House Bill 2499 to the Kansas Senate. The measure sponsored by AAA Kansas contained the 18-or-younger cellphone prohibition for drivers in school zones. It also included an all-ages ban on cellphone use when driving through road construction zones with workers present.
It would be considered evidence of a violation under the bill if an under-18 individual was observed holding a cellphone in a school zone. Law enforcement would be authorized to issue warnings until July 1, 2025, and $60 tickets after that date.
Exceptions woven into the House-passed legislation meant the limits wouldn’t apply to law enforcement or emergency personnel while on the job, a motorist stopped in a safe spot as well as a person using a hands-free device or a device permanently affixed to the vehicle. There would be no violation if a motorist used a cellphone to report illegal activity, prevent imminent injury to a person or damage to property, make a call for emergency medical assistance or relay information to a transit dispatcher.
Miller, Hawkins union
House Speaker Dan Hawkins, a Wichita Republican, and House Minority Leader Vic Miller, the Topeka Democrat, agreed on necessity of a fresh enforcement tool capable of addressing distracted driving tied to cellphones.
“If you’re holding it, they got you,” Miller said about the trigger mechanism. “This is absolutely something we are behind the times on.”
Hawkins, who had shoulder surgery after someone slammed into his truck at about 100 mph on the turnpike in August, said he would have endorsed tougher sanctions for distracted driving.
“This is a reasonable bill,” Hawkins said. “I actually would support a measure that is a whole lot stronger than this.”
Republican Rep. Ken Corbet of Topeka offered an amendment — it was rejected — to lower the fine to $10. He argued the fine could be $1,000 and people would still misuse cellphones and crash.
“The House wants to send a message about what is wrong. You can still do that,” Corbet said. “You’re not going to change peoples’ behavior. Stuff just happens.”
Rep. Leo Delperdang, R-Wichita, said Corbet was dead wrong. He said the fine should be $120 and the age mandate ought to be raised to 21.
Cellphone ban
The House Education Committee conducted a public hearing on the other bill requiring Kansas school districts to adopt policies banning use of privately owned electronic communication devices during normal hours of the school day, including time in the classroom and when passing in halls.
The text of House bill 2641, sponsored by GOP Rep. Scott Hill of Abilene, would compel over 280 school districts to set disciplinary standards for students violating rules. Exceptions would be made for educational purposes authorized by a teacher or administrator and to accommodate medical needs, special education commitments and emergency incidents.
No students testified about the bill and champions of local school board control were critical of top-down government, but a small group of counselors and parents left no doubt they believed intervention was necessary to help students addicted to cellphones or social media.
Kim Whitman, an Overland Park parent of teenagers at Shawnee Mission South High School, said she co-founded the Phone-Free Schools Movement dedicated to helping youth excel academically and develop socially without hand-held distractions and pressures.
“I am extremely concerned about our kids today. Are you?” she said. “We all see them staring down at their phones at family dinners, in restaurants, while walking down the street, even when they are hanging out with a group of friends. So, what do you think they are doing at school? You got it. Staring at their phones. In class. During passing periods. At lunch. In the restroom. They cannot resist the undeniable pull of their phones.”
Blue Valley School District middle school counselors Trish Madsen and Lori Cook said they backed a statewide mandate directing districts to abide by all-day, phone-free policies. They said a multitude of studies linked social media saturation among young adults to anxiety, depression and suicidal ideation.
“Implementing phone-free policies in schools presents an opportunity to mitigate negative issues, such as heightened levels of anxiety and stress, and create an environment conducive to learning and development,” said Stockton High School principal Lindsay Cravens and counselor Mandi Dobson.
Legislature’s lane
Ann Mah, a Topeka member of the Kansas State Board of Education, said the board had no formal position on the bill banning privately owned electronic communication devices during school hours. However, she said, KSBE objected to the Legislature making policy decisions best left to locally elected school boards.
“Some local boards have already put such policies in place, and we believe the Legislature has no authority to override those policies,” Mah said. “The use of electronic communication devices in schools is something that is not a one-size-fits-all issue and does not have a one-size-fits-all answer.”
Judith Deedy of Game On for Kansas Schools said a legislatively mandated ban on personal electronic devices during free time or between class periods was an overreach.
Kansas Association of School Boards lobbyist Shannon Kimball said the House’s cellphone edict went too far.
“As clearly expressed by our members, these are exactly the kind of policy decisions that local boards of education are constitutionally charged with making,” Kimball said. “The Legislature does not need to act in this area, nor should it.”