/ 2026 guide
School phone laws, state by state
State-by-state table: reporting through July 2026, last reviewed August 6, 2026. National counts: Ballotpedia's, as of August 27, 2026, checked September 21, 2026.
In 2025, state legislatures passed more school phone laws than in the previous decade combined. Here's where things stand, what compliance actually requires, and what it means for how your school goes phone-free.
/ The landscape
Three kinds of state law
As of August 27, 2026, 45 states have enacted a law or policy on student phone use in K-12 schools: 36 ban or limit phones in classrooms, 5 require districts to adopt a policy, and 4 encourage districts to limit use (Ballotpedia). The laws sort into three buckets:
Bell-to-bell mandates
/ Texas, New York, Virginia, Louisiana, Alabama, Nebraska, and more
Statewide laws restricting phones for the entire school day: class time, lunch, and passing periods. Roughly 18 states plus D.C. now have full-day bans or comprehensive statewide restrictions. Districts must adopt and enforce a policy; how they implement it is up to them.
Policy required, local flexibility
/ California, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and others
The state requires every district to adopt a phone policy but leaves the details local. California's Phone-Free School Act (AB 3216), for example, required every district to adopt a policy limiting smartphone use by July 1, 2026. Michigan's PA 2 of 2026 requires a policy covering instructional time for the 2026-27 school year, with passing periods and lunch left to the district.
Encouraged or pending
/ The remaining states
Some states fund pilots or formally encourage restrictions without requiring them, and more bills are moving every session. Lawmakers in several states are pushing to upgrade existing class-time rules to bell-to-bell.
Laws change fast, and the dates at the top of this page say what was checked and when. For the live picture, see Ballotpedia's state policy tracker and Stateline's bell-to-bell coverage, and confirm requirements with your state education department.
/ State by state
All 50 states, plus D.C.
Every jurisdiction, with its current statewide rule and a linked source. Where we could not confirm a statewide mandate, the row says so; nothing here is guessed. Confirm details with your state education department before a board vote.
| State | Statewide rule | Effective | Law |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Bell-to-bell banPhones off and stored for the full school day, K-12 | Effective2025-26 | LawFOCUS Act (HB 166, 2025) |
| Alaska | Policy requiredEnacted via veto override; districts without a policy default to a ban | Effective2025-26 | LawHB 57 (2025) |
| Arizona | Restriction requiredDistricts must limit devices and social media during instructional time | Effective2025-26 | LawHB 2484 (2025) |
| Arkansas | Bell-to-bell banCovers phones, smartwatches, and earbuds first bell to last | Effective2025-26 | LawBell to Bell, No Cell Act (Act 122 of 2025) |
| California | Policy requiredEvery district must adopt a policy limiting or prohibiting smartphone use | EffectivePolicies due July 1, 2026 | LawPhone-Free School Act (AB 3216, 2024) |
| Colorado | Policy requiredPolicy content left to districts; prohibition not mandated | EffectiveJuly 1, 2026 | LawHB25-1135 |
| Connecticut | RecommendedState Board guidance (Aug 2026) urges bell-to-bell; 2026 ban bill passed House only | EffectiveN/A | LawSource |
| Delaware | Restriction requiredSigned March 12, 2026; policies must limit use during instructional time | Effective2026-27 (policies due Aug 31, 2026) | LawSB 106 (2026) |
| District of Columbia | Bell-to-bell banApplies to all public and charter schools citywide | Effective2026-27 (DCPS began 2025-26) | LawDistraction-Free Learning Amendment Act of 2025 |
| Florida | Bell-to-bell banK-8 all day; high schools instructional time plus a 6-district all-day pilot | Effective2025-26 | LawHB 1105 (2025); HB 379 (2023) |
| Georgia | Bell-to-bell ban2026 law extends the K-8 ban to high schools | EffectiveK-8 2026-27; 9-12 2027-28 | LawDistraction-Free Education Act (HB 340, 2025); HB 1009 (2026) |
| Hawaii | Bell-to-bell banSingle statewide district; K-8 all day, high schools instructional time with campus discretion | Effective2026-27 | LawBoard of Education policy (adopted Feb 12, 2026) |
| Idaho | Policy requiredPolicies must emphasize minimizing use; 2026 bell-to-bell bill defeated | EffectivePolicies due Dec 31, 2025 | LawSB 1032 (2025) |
| Illinois | Bell-to-bell banSigned July 28, 2026; high schools may locally allow lunch and passing periods | Effective2027-28 | LawSB 2427 (2026) |
| Indiana | Bell-to-bell banExpands the 2024 instructional-time law; no-device or secure-storage policy options | Effective2026-27 (July 1, 2026) | LawSEA 78 (2026) |
| Iowa | Restriction requiredMinimum ban during instructional time; districts may go further | Effective2025-26 | LawHF 782 (2025) |
| Kansas | Bell-to-bell banCovers public and accredited nonpublic schools; devices stored away from students | Effective2026-27 (compliance certified by Sept 1, 2026) | LawHB 2299 (2026) |
| Kentucky | Restriction requiredMinimum instructional-time ban; districts may extend to the full day | Effective2025-26 | LawHB 208 (2025) |
| Louisiana | Bell-to-bell banNo possession on the student's person throughout the instructional day | Effective2024-25 | LawSB 207 (2024) |
| Maine | Bell-to-bell banIncludes smartwatches and other connected devices; state storage funding | EffectiveAug 1, 2026 | Law2026 supplemental budget provision |
| Maryland | Bell-to-bell banSigned May 2026; counties set storage rules | Effective2027-28 | LawJoanne C. Benson Maryland Phone-Free Schools Act (2026) |
| Massachusetts | No statewide mandateBell-to-bell bills passed Senate (2025) and House (2026) in differing forms; final law pending | EffectiveN/A | LawSource |
| MichiganCompliance guide available | Restriction requiredUniform K-12 ban on use during instructional time; districts may go stricter; IEP, 504, medical, and emergency exemptions | Effective2026-27 (signed Feb 10, 2026) | LawPA 2 of 2026 (HB 4141) |
| Minnesota | Policy requiredDistricts choose policy content; statewide ban bills considered in 2026 | EffectivePolicies due March 15, 2025 | LawMinn. Stat. 121A.73 (2024) |
| Mississippi | No statewide mandateBan bills died in both the 2025 and 2026 sessions | EffectiveN/A | LawSource |
| Missouri | Bell-to-bell banProvision sunsets August 2032 | Effective2025-26 | LawSB 68 (2025) |
| Montana | No statewide mandateState leaders encourage local policies; many districts restrict on their own | EffectiveN/A | LawSource |
| Nebraska | Bell-to-bell banDistricts adopt the policies and may carve out lunch or passing periods | Effective2025-26 | LawLB 140 (2025) |
| Nevada | Restriction requiredPolicies must limit devices during instruction; strictness left to districts | Effective2026-27 (July 1, 2026) | LawSB 444 (2025) |
| New Hampshire | Bell-to-bell ban | Effective2025-26 | LawHB 2 (2025 budget) |
| New Jersey | Bell-to-bell banDistrict policies must align to NJDOE bell-to-bell guidance | Effective2026-27 | LawS3695 (signed Jan 8, 2026) |
| New Mexico | Policy required2026 bell-to-bell bill (SB 23) passed Senate but died in House | EffectiveJune 20, 2025 | LawAnti-Distraction Policy in Schools (SB 11, 2025) |
| New York | Bell-to-bell banIncludes state funding for storage solutions | Effective2025-26 | LawFY 2026 state budget (distraction-free schools) |
| North Carolina | Restriction requiredInstructional-time ban; districts choose enforcement and stricter options | Effective2025-26 | LawHB 959 (2025) |
| North Dakota | Bell-to-bell ban | Effective2025-26 | LawHB 1160 (2025) |
| Ohio | Bell-to-bell banReplaces the 2024 policy-only law with a full-school-day ban | EffectiveJan 1, 2026 | LawHB 96 (2025 budget) |
| Oklahoma | Bell-to-bell banOne-year mandate made permanent in 2026 | Effective2025-26 (made permanent July 1, 2026) | LawSB 139 (2025); HB 1276 (2026) |
| Oregon | Bell-to-bell banImposed by executive order rather than statute | EffectiveJan 1, 2026 (policies by Oct 31, 2025) | LawExecutive Order 25-09 (2025) |
| Pennsylvania | RecommendedState grants fund lockable pouches; HB 1814 bell-to-bell bill still awaiting final passage | EffectiveN/A | LawSource |
| Rhode Island | Bell-to-bell banSchools set storage method and reasonable exceptions | EffectiveAug 1, 2026 | Law2025-H 5598A / 2025-S 0771A |
| South Carolina | Bell-to-bell banFree to Focus model policy; adoption tied to state funding | EffectiveJan 2025 | LawBudget Proviso 1.103 + State Board model policy |
| South Dakota | No statewide mandateSB 198 passed Senate but failed in House committee, March 2026 | EffectiveN/A | LawSource |
| Tennessee | Restriction requiredInstructional-time ban; districts decide rules outside class | Effective2025-26 | LawHB 932 / SB 897 (2025) |
| Texas | Bell-to-bell banCovers the entire school day including cafeterias and hallways | Effective2025-26 | LawHB 1481 (2025) |
| Utah | Bell-to-bell banStatewide default replacing the 2025 classroom-only ban; districts may modify | Effective2026-27 (July 1, 2026) | LawSB 69 (2026) |
| Vermont | Bell-to-bell banAlso bars schools from using social media to contact students | Effective2026-27 | LawAct 72 (H.480, 2025) |
| Virginia | Bell-to-bell ban2025 statutes codified the executive order | Effective2025-26 | LawExecutive Order 33 (2024); HB 1961 / SB 738 (2025) |
| Washington | RecommendedOSPI guidance urges instructional-time limits; governor proposed a statewide ban June 2026 | EffectiveN/A | LawSource |
| West Virginia | Restriction requiredClassroom ban; county boards set storage and possession rules | Effective2025-26 | LawHB 2003 (2025) |
| Wisconsin | Restriction requiredInstructional-time ban; bell-to-bell expansion bill pending in 2026 | Effective2026-27 (policies by July 1, 2026) | Law2025 Wisconsin Act 42 |
| Wyoming | No statewide mandateSenate defeated a ban bill in January 2026 | EffectiveN/A | LawSource |
Status definitions: Bell-to-bell ban restricts phones for the entire school day; Restriction required means the state mandates limits during instructional time; Policy required means districts must adopt a policy but the state does not dictate its scope; Recommended means non-binding state guidance or incentives only. Each row links its primary or best available source.
/ The fine print
What compliance actually requires
Here's the part that gets missed: these laws mandate a policy, not a product. No state law we're aware of requires pouches, lockers, or any specific vendor. Schools decide how to implement. The state wants the policy written, adopted, and followed.
"Followed" is where implementation gets real. A policy on paper doesn't survive a school-board meeting or a state audit; a daily record does. That's the gap NIX Education fills. Every school day, every student scan is a verified, logged data point that the phone was actually left behind. Phone-free compliance and a daily arrival record, one dashboard, nothing to keep by hand.
And because no hardware is involved, the policy costs a per-school subscription, not $25 to $30 per student in pouches every year. See the cost comparison.
/ Common questions
Compliance, answered
Does my state require a school cell phone policy?+
What does a bell-to-bell phone law actually require?+
Do state phone laws require pouches or other hardware?+
How does NIX help with compliance?+
Your law requires a policy. NIX proves it's working.
A verified phone-free school day with no pouches to buy, built for the bell-to-bell era.