An amendment to a bill prohibiting texting by all motorists would extend to school bus drivers, and it would treat radio systems like cell phones.

HB 4282, which awaits debate in the full House and Public Works Committee, not only blocks text messaging but contains a provision that school bus drivers cannot be a part of any mobile communication while driving or when supervising students during loading or unloading, except in an emergency. This includes using a hands-free device.

The bill also would effect the use of two-way radios. Donald Tudor, the director of student transportation at the South Carolina Department of Education, said a common misconception when it comes to two-way radios is that drivers and dispatch use code transmissions when, on the contrary, most hold normal conversations.

“I really don’t see a difference between holding a two-way radio in your hand or holding a cell phone,” added Tudor, who oversees all but a handful of the state’s fleet of 6,000 school buses. “You’re still communicating; you’re mind’s on something else.”

Tudor said that many districts in the state already rely solely on cell phones for driver communication because their easier to use and cheaper than potentially replacing a fleet’s worth of two-way radios that could be made obsolete by upcoming FCC narrow banding requirements in 2013. Additionally, all school buses purchased by the state after 1994 come equipped with cell phone chargers.

This could mean that school districts would need to be aware of when its drivers were on routes and only call them if there was an emergency situation to report. For example, Tudor said, a specific phone number could be assigned as an emergency number so that, when it came up on caller ID, the driver would know it was OK to pick up the call..

Included in HB 4282 is a public awareness campaign that would inform all drivers of the new law, and proceeds from fines would go towards emergency care at local hospitals.

Tudor said a controversial part of the bill that could be difficult to pass the General Assembly centers on a push to tie penalties to the state’s DUI laws. For example, if a driver seriously injures or kills another person because of distraction caused by mobile communication, the penalty would be more severe than if the driver only caused harm to his or herself or their vehicle.

Another aspect of the bill would include posting a sticker inside the school bus with a toll-free 800 number for students to call to report any school bus driver who was talking on a cell phone while driving or not wearing their seat belt. The sticker concept is borrowed from a successful pilot program implemented in Greensboro, N.C.