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/ 2026 guide

School phone laws, state by state

Last reviewed August 6, 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 early 2026, 38 states and Washington, D.C. have some form of statewide restriction or requirement on student phone use, and 26 states have enacted laws requiring schools to ban or limit phones. The laws sort into three buckets:

Strictest

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.

Most common

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.

Watch list

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. This page reflects reporting as of July 2026. 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.

StateStatewide ruleEffectiveLaw
AlabamaBell-to-bell banPhones off and stored for the full school day, K-122025-26FOCUS Act (HB 166, 2025)
AlaskaPolicy requiredEnacted via veto override; districts without a policy default to a ban2025-26HB 57 (2025)
ArizonaRestriction requiredDistricts must limit devices and social media during instructional time2025-26HB 2484 (2025)
ArkansasBell-to-bell banCovers phones, smartwatches, and earbuds first bell to last2025-26Bell to Bell, No Cell Act (Act 122 of 2025)
CaliforniaPolicy requiredEvery district must adopt a policy limiting or prohibiting smartphone usePolicies due July 1, 2026Phone-Free School Act (AB 3216, 2024)
ColoradoPolicy requiredPolicy content left to districts; prohibition not mandatedJuly 1, 2026HB25-1135
ConnecticutRecommendedState Board guidance (Aug 2026) urges bell-to-bell; 2026 ban bill passed House onlyN/ASource
DelawareRestriction requiredSigned March 12, 2026; policies must limit use during instructional time2026-27 (policies due Aug 31, 2026)SB 106 (2026)
District of ColumbiaBell-to-bell banApplies to all public and charter schools citywide2026-27 (DCPS began 2025-26)Distraction-Free Learning Amendment Act of 2025
FloridaBell-to-bell banK-8 all day; high schools instructional time plus a 6-district all-day pilot2025-26HB 1105 (2025); HB 379 (2023)
GeorgiaBell-to-bell ban2026 law extends the K-8 ban to high schoolsK-8 2026-27; 9-12 2027-28Distraction-Free Education Act (HB 340, 2025); HB 1009 (2026)
HawaiiBell-to-bell banSingle statewide district; K-8 all day, high schools instructional time with campus discretion2026-27Board of Education policy (adopted Feb 12, 2026)
IdahoPolicy requiredPolicies must emphasize minimizing use; 2026 bell-to-bell bill defeatedPolicies due Dec 31, 2025SB 1032 (2025)
IllinoisBell-to-bell banSigned July 28, 2026; high schools may locally allow lunch and passing periods2027-28SB 2427 (2026)
IndianaBell-to-bell banExpands the 2024 instructional-time law; no-device or secure-storage policy options2026-27 (July 1, 2026)SEA 78 (2026)
IowaRestriction requiredMinimum ban during instructional time; districts may go further2025-26HF 782 (2025)
KansasBell-to-bell banCovers public and accredited nonpublic schools; devices stored away from students2026-27 (compliance certified by Sept 1, 2026)HB 2299 (2026)
KentuckyRestriction requiredMinimum instructional-time ban; districts may extend to the full day2025-26HB 208 (2025)
LouisianaBell-to-bell banNo possession on the student's person throughout the instructional day2024-25SB 207 (2024)
MaineBell-to-bell banIncludes smartwatches and other connected devices; state storage fundingAug 1, 20262026 supplemental budget provision
MarylandBell-to-bell banSigned May 2026; counties set storage rules2027-28Joanne C. Benson Maryland Phone-Free Schools Act (2026)
MassachusettsNo statewide mandateBell-to-bell bills passed Senate (2025) and House (2026) in differing forms; final law pendingN/ASource
MichiganCompliance guide availableRestriction requiredUniform K-12 ban on use during instructional time; districts may go stricter; IEP, 504, medical, and emergency exemptions2026-27 (signed Feb 10, 2026)PA 2 of 2026 (HB 4141)
MinnesotaPolicy requiredDistricts choose policy content; statewide ban bills considered in 2026Policies due March 15, 2025Minn. Stat. 121A.73 (2024)
MississippiNo statewide mandateBan bills died in both the 2025 and 2026 sessionsN/ASource
MissouriBell-to-bell banProvision sunsets August 20322025-26SB 68 (2025)
MontanaNo statewide mandateState leaders encourage local policies; many districts restrict on their ownN/ASource
NebraskaBell-to-bell banDistricts adopt the policies and may carve out lunch or passing periods2025-26LB 140 (2025)
NevadaRestriction requiredPolicies must limit devices during instruction; strictness left to districts2026-27 (July 1, 2026)SB 444 (2025)
New HampshireBell-to-bell ban2025-26HB 2 (2025 budget)
New JerseyBell-to-bell banDistrict policies must align to NJDOE bell-to-bell guidance2026-27S3695 (signed Jan 8, 2026)
New MexicoPolicy required2026 bell-to-bell bill (SB 23) passed Senate but died in HouseJune 20, 2025Anti-Distraction Policy in Schools (SB 11, 2025)
New YorkBell-to-bell banIncludes state funding for storage solutions2025-26FY 2026 state budget (distraction-free schools)
North CarolinaRestriction requiredInstructional-time ban; districts choose enforcement and stricter options2025-26HB 959 (2025)
North DakotaBell-to-bell ban2025-26HB 1160 (2025)
OhioBell-to-bell banReplaces the 2024 policy-only law with a full-school-day banJan 1, 2026HB 96 (2025 budget)
OklahomaBell-to-bell banOne-year mandate made permanent in 20262025-26 (made permanent July 1, 2026)SB 139 (2025); HB 1276 (2026)
OregonBell-to-bell banImposed by executive order rather than statuteJan 1, 2026 (policies by Oct 31, 2025)Executive Order 25-09 (2025)
PennsylvaniaRecommendedState grants fund lockable pouches; HB 1814 bell-to-bell bill still awaiting final passageN/ASource
Rhode IslandBell-to-bell banSchools set storage method and reasonable exceptionsAug 1, 20262025-H 5598A / 2025-S 0771A
South CarolinaBell-to-bell banFree to Focus model policy; adoption tied to state fundingJan 2025Budget Proviso 1.103 + State Board model policy
South DakotaNo statewide mandateSB 198 passed Senate but failed in House committee, March 2026N/ASource
TennesseeRestriction requiredInstructional-time ban; districts decide rules outside class2025-26HB 932 / SB 897 (2025)
TexasBell-to-bell banCovers the entire school day including cafeterias and hallways2025-26HB 1481 (2025)
UtahBell-to-bell banStatewide default replacing the 2025 classroom-only ban; districts may modify2026-27 (July 1, 2026)SB 69 (2026)
VermontBell-to-bell banAlso bars schools from using social media to contact students2026-27Act 72 (H.480, 2025)
VirginiaBell-to-bell ban2025 statutes codified the executive order2025-26Executive Order 33 (2024); HB 1961 / SB 738 (2025)
WashingtonRecommendedOSPI guidance urges instructional-time limits; governor proposed a statewide ban June 2026N/ASource
West VirginiaRestriction requiredClassroom ban; county boards set storage and possession rules2025-26HB 2003 (2025)
WisconsinRestriction requiredInstructional-time ban; bell-to-bell expansion bill pending in 20262026-27 (policies by July 1, 2026)2025 Wisconsin Act 42
WyomingNo statewide mandateSenate defeated a ban bill in January 2026N/ASource

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. Attendance and phone-free compliance, one dashboard, no spreadsheets.

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?+
Probably. As of early 2026, 38 states and Washington, D.C. have some form of statewide restriction or requirement that districts limit student phone use, and 26 states have enacted laws requiring schools to ban or limit phones. Check the live Ballotpedia tracker or your state education department for the current rule in your state.
What does a bell-to-bell phone law actually require?+
Bell-to-bell laws restrict student phone use for the entire school day, instructional and non-instructional time both, not just during class. Most require the district to adopt and enforce a written policy. They generally do not mandate specific hardware like pouches or lockers; how to implement the policy is left to the school.
Do state phone laws require pouches or other hardware?+
No law we're aware of mandates a specific product. States require a policy and, increasingly, evidence it's being followed. Pouches are one way to implement a policy; a verified no-hardware system like NIX Education is another.
How does NIX help with compliance?+
NIX Education produces a daily, verified log of phone-free school days: staff scan existing student ID badges at the door, and NIX confirms each phone was actually left outside the campus geofence. That gives administrators a record their policy is being followed, without buying per-student hardware.

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.

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