A bill that would ban the use of all handheld electronics by drivers has passed the state Senate, and will now move onto the House where its passage remains uncertain.

The bill, sponsored by Sen. Mark Montigny, D-New Bedford, would make it illegal for drivers to hold a cellphone to make a call, access social media or use any camera functions on the phone. There are exceptions for tapping or swiping once to activate or deactivate hands-free mode or a voice command for navigation features, and for emergency calls.

Fourteen states have similar laws.

“It’s a great bill, it’s really important, I think it strikes the right balance,” Sen. Eric Lesser, D-Longmeadow, told the Gazette. “This is really an issue whose time has come.”

After substantial debate, the final version of the bill creates fines of $100 for a first offense, $250 for a second and $500 for each subsequent offense. Surcharges that affect a driver’s insurance payments don’t kick in until the third offense, and drivers who break the law more than once will have to complete a program meant to change their behavior and attitudes about distracted driving.

“Another thing we’re trying to do here is change the culture around distracted driving,” Lesser said.

The bill now heads to the House. An analogous bill cleared the Senate last year, but never made it through the House. A spokesman for Democratic House Speaker Robert DeLeo would only say Thursday the current bill would be “reviewed” as it went through the legislative process.

“We would hope that they would get to it and get to it soon because it’s reached the point where we really need something to be done to protect motorists and pedestrians,” Senate President Stanley Rosenberg, D-Amherst, said Thursday.

The measure passed on a voice vote and no senator argued against its passage. But some Democrats, including Democratic Sen. Michael Barrett, suggested the proposed fines would place an unfair burden on low-income residents.

“If you are poor and your car is a little older, you should still avoid distracted driving but these fees are going to hit you very hard,” said Barrett, whose amendment to lower the progression of fines to $50, $100 and $150 was defeated on a 26-12 vote.

Rosenberg said an amendment added to the bill will ensure that data is collected on the drivers who are fined, to make sure the law is being fairly and evenly applied — in other words, to ensure that profiling of drivers who are people of color or young does not occur.

A law passed in Massachusetts in 2010 bans texting and driving, and bans the use of handheld phones by 16- and 17-year-old drivers.

Supporters of the bill rejected suggestions of unwarranted government intrusion into people’s private business.

“There is no argument on the other side, other than if you want to make the libertarian argument that government should stay away and let people do what they want,” said Sen. Mark Montigny, a New Bedford Democrat. “That’s fine, except when you are driving a multi-thousand pound killing machine and the innocent folks are the ones that usually get hurt or die.”

Critics, however, say that law doesn’t go far enough to address a growing problem. Distracted driving resulted in some 3,500 deaths in 2015, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. That same year, 21 percent of the 291 fatal crashes in Massachusetts involved a distracted driver, according to the agency’s data.

“In the last 10 years, we’ve seen smartphones go from a kind of niche futuristic product to something that everyone has,” Lesser said.

Though that transformation has lead to obvious positive impacts, he said, it has also created clearly dangerous conditions when those phones are used while driving.

Republican Gov. Charlie Baker, through a spokesman, said he appreciated the Legislature’s efforts to update the state’s distracted driving laws and promised to “carefully review” any bill that reached his desk.

Many motorists appeared supportive of tougher cellphone laws.

“I see too many drivers on a daily basis who are texting and talking on their phones,” said Stewart Vaughn, a Chatham resident who was in Boston with his son to attend a Red Sox game. “I’m normally not one for more rules and regulations but I am for that one because I’ve almost gotten slammed a few times.”

While some at a rest stop along the Massachusetts Turnpike were reluctant to discuss their own habits while driving, Vanilda Passos said she was already using a hands-free Bluetooth device. Even with that, she did not feel totally safe from distraction.

“Not 100 percent,” the Lancaster resident said. “I don’t like to use it.”

Similar statutes have already passed in the neighboring states of Connecticut, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont. Lawmakers in Maine have also passed a similar ban, which awaits the signature of Republican Gov. Paul LePage.

Material from the Associated Press is included in this report.

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