Sponsors (8)
The bill pilots device-restriction policies to reduce classroom distractions and build evidence for better school practices, while creating safety/communication risks, logistical and fiscal burdens, and producing limited short-term findings.
Students in participating schools will have fewer in-class distractions because mobile devices are restricted during school hours, which can improve attention and instructional time.
Students with disabilities, health needs, and English learners will be able to receive exemptions and the bill clarifies disability/English-learner definitions, helping preserve necessary assistive and translation access.
Federal-funded evaluation and a required study will produce evidence-based information on how mobile devices affect learning and behavior, helping districts craft better policies.
Students and parents may face reduced ability to communicate during the school day (including in emergencies) if personal devices are stored or access is otherwise limited, raising safety and practical concerns.
Local education agencies and school staff will incur logistical burdens and costs (policy changes, stakeholder engagement, storage/locker systems) that may exceed what the grant covers.
The pilot's limited size and the study's two-year timeline may produce results that lack generalizability and cannot capture long-term academic or mental-health effects.
Based on analysis of 4 sections of legislative text.
Introduced February 12, 2025 by Bruce Westerman · Last progress February 12, 2025
Creates a federal study on the effects of student mobile device use in K–12 schools and funds a Department of Education pilot that awards grants to local school districts to install secure lockers and create school environments free of personal mobile devices. The Surgeon General (with HHS) must report study findings within two years, and participating schools must meet application and notification requirements and may exempt device use for health, disability, or translation needs.