Oklahoma House, Senate consider each other's bills banning cellphones in schools
OKLAHOMA CITY — A Senate committee has approved a House bill calling for cellphone bans in public schools, setting the stage for final negotiations on a major policy priority for Oklahoma lawmakers.
The Senate Education Committee advanced House Bill 1276 with a 7-4 vote on Tuesday. Similar legislation from the Senate is on the agenda for the House Common Education Committee's meeting Wednesday.
HB 1276 would require every district in the state to develop a policy restricting student use of cellphones and personal electronic devices for the entire school day, starting next school year. The bill leaves the door open for local school boards to opt out and continue permitting student cellphone use in their districts.
Similar legislation that originated in the Senate, SB 139, would mandate a cellphone ban in all public schools for a year with no chance for districts to opt out until after the 2025-26 academic year. Districts would have the choice after the first year whether to keep the prohibition in place.
Each version would allow students to use their cellphones for medically necessary reasons or in emergency cases.
Sen. Ally Seifried, R-Claremore, and Rep. Chad Caldwell, R-Enid, are the authors of both bills.
If both bills pass the committee stage, Seifried said House and Senate lawmakers will discuss which version has the most support from the full Legislature.
Allowing districts the chance to opt out of the cellphone ban has been a priority of the House, Seifried said. The message she heard most often from fellow senators is 'let's get it done,' she said.
'I think we'll eventually get together and decide which version will pass and which can gain the most consensus,' Seifried said after the committee vote. 'We wanted to get both through committee. We really are working together on this quite closely, and so that'll be for us to decide in the coming weeks.'
House lawmakers passed HB 1276 with overwhelming support from both parties. The Senate passed SB 139 along party lines.
The policy of restricting cellphones in schools has enjoyed vocal support from Gov. Kevin Stitt and legislative leaders. If one of the measures becomes law, Oklahoma would join nine other states, including California and Arkansas, that have enacted a ban on cellphones in schools.
Oklahoma lawmakers have been looking into the issue since before the 2025 session began. Both chambers hosted fall interim studies examining the detriments of digital media on children and the benefits of cellphone bans in Oklahoma schools that already have these restrictions in place.
Caldwell said he and Seifried agree educators, parents and students would recognize the positive impact once a statewide ban is in place.
He decided to include a district opt-out provision in HB 1276, he said, after having conversations with House leadership and fellow representatives. Caldwell said he hopes both the House and Senate versions advance past the committee stage for consideration in final negotiations.
'This truly has a chance to make transformative change in our schools, and that's not something we get a chance to do every day,' Caldwell said.
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