Iowa Senate passes Gov. Reynolds' bill to restrict cellphone use at school, heads back to Iowa House
The Iowa Senate passed a bill Monday that would restrict some cellphone use in schools across the state.
Senate lawmakers unanimously voted to substitute House File 782 for its companion bill, Senate File 370. bans the use of electronic devices during instructional time, at a minimum. The Iowa House passed the bill last week in a 88-9 vote.
Under the bill, school boards would need to adopt policies to let parents how they can communicate with their children during school hours and in case of an emergency.
The bill would also allow parents to petition the school district if they feel their child needs to keep their device for a legitimate reason, including physical or mental health. Students with Individualized Education Programs could keep their devices if they need them for their IEP plan.
The Iowa Department of Education would provide sample policies for restricting devices, but school boards could also approve more restrictive policies if they want. The Iowa Senate voted to amend this section of the bill to include a deadline of May 1, 2025, for when the state education department would have to provide those sample policies to school districts.
"There is a concern about the mental health and the mental wellbeing of students who spend a majority of time on electronic devices, especially with social media," Sen. Lynn Evans (R-Aurelia) said.
Senate lawmakers voted unanimously to pass the bill through as amended. But, because their version is now different than what House lawmakers approved last week, the bill heads back to the Iowa House for a vote.
If the Iowa House approves the same bill passed Monday by the Iowa Senate, it will be sent to the governor's desk for a signature.
Several Iowa school districts have already implemented or announced plans to implement a cellphone-free policy in classrooms. Des Moines Public Schools approved a cellphone ban earlier this month.
Hoover High School already has a policy in place. New data provided to vlog by the school's principal shows the following results comparing the first semester of the 2023-24 school year to the first semester of the 2024-25 school year:
- 31% increase in A/Bs
- 46% decrease in Fs
- 59% decrease in out-of-school suspensions
- 4% increase in attendance
Some Senate Democrats expressed frustration with the bill during debate. Sen. Herman Quirmbach (D-Ames) said the bill was "a minimalist approach."
Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott introduced an amendment to make the bill apply to both public and private schools in Iowa.
"It makes sense that this also apply to all accredited nonpublic schools receiving Iowa taxpayer dollars," Trone Garriott said.
The amendment failed. Still, all lawmakers voted yes to advance the bill.
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