COLUMBUS — Ohio moved a step closer Thursday to being the first state to ban teenagers from using electronic devices while driving.

Thirty-one states have banned cellphone use for teen drivers but none have gone as far as Ohio might go.

The Ohio Senate approved a statewide texting ban with tougher restrictions and penalties for teens in a 25-8 vote Thursday after senators argued whether the legislation threatens personal freedoms or doesn’t go far enough.

The bill prohibits drivers younger than 18 from using cellphones and other electronic devices. Teens who violate the primary offense could receive a $150 fine and 60-day license suspension. For multiple offenses, they face a $300 fine and a one-year license suspension. Exceptions were made for hands-free GPS units and emergency situations.

Senators weakened the proposed texting ban for adults, making the violation a secondary offense similar to seatbelt violations, which means drivers can’t be pulled over for texting. Drivers would have to be pulled over for other violations such as speeding or running a red light. The ban also allows 10 exceptions including dialing a phone number or using the phone’s GPS services.

In the House version, which passed 88-10 in June, texting was a primary offense for all drivers.

Sen. Tom Patton, R-Strongsville, said the change was because some lawmakers feared a ban could not be enforced.

The eight senators who opposed the bill were split by party. Sen. Bill Coley, R-Middletown, said the bill goes against adult freedoms. Coley cited a 2010 study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety that concluded statewide texting bans did not reduce the number of crashes and noted an increase in crashes involving young drivers.

“Be it texting, talking to other people in the vehicle, entering a destination into a GPS or dipping your fries in ketchup, distracted driving is dangerous and the lives destroyed by distracted driving are not going to care whether you were texting or talking when you destroyed their lives,” Coley said. “Saving lives is important but saving freedom is more important.”

Republican Sen. Peggy Lehner from Kettering disagreed with Coley.

“The right to life is your pre-eminent right and no one has the freedom to take an action that puts another’s life in jeopardy,” Lehner said.

The statewide ban does not trump local ordinances, which Sen. Bill Seitz, R-Cincinnati, said creates a “stacking problem” where drivers could be pulled over by law enforcement and punished under state and local laws.

For example, Kettering’s texting ban is stronger than the proposed state ban — all drivers, regardless of age, can be pulled over and ticketed for texting while driving. Kettering police begin issuing tickets July 1 and the city is informing citizens of the law through public service announcements, highly visible signs and school visits, said city spokeswoman Amy Berlean.

Seitz said he doesn’t text but is guilty of occasionally checking his email while driving home.

“I’m not going to vote for a law that makes me guilty — I’d be a hypocrite,” Seitz said.

The bill’s advocates, including the Fraternal Order of Police, said the ban would be more effective as a primary offense for adults but supported the teen restrictions. The House of Representatives has to approve the Senate changes before it heads to the governor. Gov. John Kasich told reporters Wednesday that texting while driving is “a real problem.”

Teen drivers interviewed Thursday said they favor the tougher penalties and restrictions.

Jake Ashley, 17, a junior at Centerville High School, said a friend’s older brother was hit by a car whose driver was texting. The victim survived, but was on life support for a while.

“It’s not worth it to endanger yourself and those around you,” Ashley said. He said the proposed law is fair and he supports the idea that the state ban focuses on all electronic use while driving.

“No matter what, you are taking your eyes off the road,” he said. “If you are trying to type in a search for a song, it’s still the same as typing a message.”

Jaliyah Rivers, 17, a junior at Dayton Early College Academy, said she agrees with the ban, but said the law should not single out young drivers when it comes to the tougher penalties.

“I think that it’s fair as far as protecting us and the people around us, but older people are learning how to text,” Rivers said. She said the new ban will be effective because “no teenager wants to pay $150 fine when they can spend $150 somewhere else.”