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A legislative committee on Monday approved a bill that would require Arkansas school districts to ban students’ access to cellphones and personal electronic devices during the school day.
Lead sponsor Sen. Tyler Dees, R-Siloam Springs, told the Senate Education Committee the “much-needed bill” would create a distraction-free environment conducive to learning and limit the negative effects of social media on children’s mental health.
After promising to restrict cellphone access in her State of the State address, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders last week announced Dees and Rep. Jon Eubanks, R-Paris, would file Senate Bill 142.
Arkansas lawmakers file bill to restrict phone access at school
At least eight states have enacted cellphone bans in the last two years, and several others like Arkansas are considering proposals this year, according to the Associated Press.
The Bell to Bell, No Cell Act, requires school districts to develop cellphone policies that ban smartphones and other personal electronic devices during the school day beginning with the 2025-2026 academic year. The policies, which must be published on districts’ websites, must include exemptions for health reasons, Individualized Education Programs (IEPs), extracurricular activities and emergencies.
Policies must be submitted to the Arkansas Department of Education’s Division of Elementary and Secondary Education for approval. Districts that fail to adopt or enforce a policy would be cited for a violation of state accreditation standards.
Under the proposed law, districts would not be liable if a personal electronic device is lost, stolen or damaged.
Stakeholders have been working on the bill for over a year and received feedback from a pilot program launched by the state last summer, Dees said. Arkansas lawmakers in August approved $7 million for the roughly 180 school districts that signed up for the program to purchase phone storage devices.
Dees said SB 142 provides districts “local control” by allowing them to craft a policy that works best for them. For example, some may want phones stored in pouches or lockers, while others may just require that they’re turned off and stowed in backpacks, he said.
“There’s all sorts of different versions, and each school should have the ability to decide what works best for them,” Dees said. “Same with student discipline. Each school district should have input on what that looks like. And so we’ve given the ability for that, we just set the parameters.”
During his presentation, Dees was joined by Aric Bergthold, a member of the Siloam Springs School District School Board who spoke in favor of the bill. The Siloam Springs board unanimously approved an updated cellphone policy last summer per Bergthold’s suggestion, according to the Siloam Springs Herald Leader.
Stand Up Arkansas Executive Director Steve Grappe was the sole person to speak against SB 142. While he agrees with a lot of the bill, Grappe said it felt like “General Assembly overreach,” and he called for consistency when it comes to lawmakers granting or rescinding authority to local communities.
Additionally, he asked why the law would not apply to private schools that accept public funds through the state’s school voucher program, and addressed the challenges the proposed law could place on rural schools.
“All we’ve heard today is cellphones, but this is tablets, laptops, any electronic devices, phones on your watch, there’s all kinds of things, and in rural schools where we don’t have the resources, this becomes important,” Grappe said. “So I urge you to think twice about passing the bill as is because there’s some overreach, and if we’re going to pass this bill, let’s make it fair for all schools that take money.”
The committee approved SB 142 on a voice vote and it will next be heard by the full Senate.
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