NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A bill that will require school districts to adopt policies that ban the use of cellphones during class has now passed the Tennessee Senate and will head to Gov. Bill Lee for his signature.
HB 932, by Rebecca Alexander (R-Jonesborough), requires all public school districts in Tennessee to adopt policies that outline prohibitions of student use of “wireless communication devices” during “instructional time,” with certain exceptions. The bill defines “wireless communication devices” as including but not limited to cellphones, tablets, and laptop computers, and allows for exemptions to be crafted into the policies, including for emergency purposes or in line with students with disabilities who require devices for their education.
“This bill aims to minimize classroom distractions and internet bullying on our school campuses,” Sen. Ferrell Haile said of the bill on the Senate floor Thursday.
According to Haile, who is the Senate sponsor of the bill, the idea is to require the policy in all school districts, though he acknowledged “a lot of the school districts already do this,” during floor debate. Additionally, Haile said “a lot of the bullying” takes place during the lunch hour, so school districts could also elect to prohibit the use of cellphones during that time period as well.
The measure saw bipartisan support, with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle agreeing cellphones should be used less during school hours.
Sen. Rusty Crowe (R-Johnson City), speaking in support of the measure, said while he understood some parent concern about not being able to contact their child in the event of an emergency, evidence suggested having multiple people trying to make calls or send texts largely “messes up the entire safety plan.”
“When everybody’s calling everybody else, it really ruins the plans to save these kids,” he said. “So, it’s a great bill, and it’s time that we do this.”
The bill passed the Senate 30-0, with Nashville Sen. Heidi Campbell abstaining from the vote. During the floor debate, she applauded the sponsor for the intent of the bill but felt this issue should be of local concern rather than a state policy. She noted Metro Nashville Public Schools already had such a policy in place.
Since the measure passed in the Tennessee House of Representatives earlier this week, the bill now heads to Gov. Bill Lee’s desk for his signature. The law will take effect as of July 1 in order to be in place for the 2025-2026 school year.
