Illinois House Committee Advances Pritzker's Cell Phone Ban Bill for Public Schools
A bill banning students from using cell phones during the school day was unanimously recommended to be adopted by an Illinois House committee Wednesday. The bill, which was introduced in the state Senate during the last legislative session, has bipartisan support and has been a focus of Gov. J.B. Pritzker in recent months.
Senate Bill 2427 and its associated amendments were heard by the House Education Policy Committee early Wednesday. The bill would require school boards across the state implement a policy prohibiting the use of cell phones and other personal communication devices from the beginning to the end of each school day, with some exceptions.
Rep. Laura Faver Dias, D-Grayslake, questioned Lindsey Volz, a legislative advisor with the Governor's Office, on how the bill would address students' access to phones in the event of an emergency at school.
Schools are able to allow exceptions if they choose to in the case of an emergency, and it's up to the school districts on how the phone is stored as well. So, it might be as simple as reaching into their backpack or going to their locker, Volz said.
How to securely store devices is left to the discretion of school boards, with public input on the new policies being required, according to the bill's text.
Rep. Adam M. Niemerg, R-Dieterich, questioned if the bill provided any specific enforcement mechanisms for schools and if any schools that already have policies in place have voiced opposition to the bill.
Enforcement actions are largely up to schools, but the bill prohibits certain punishments like fines and expulsion over phone use, said Rep. Michelle Mussman, D-Schaumburg. I would say it's been somewhat limited and they are allowed to keep their cell phone policy in place, Mussman said. The earliest they would change it is the 2030-31 school year.
The committee unanimously recommended the bill be adopted, sending it to the House floor for a second reading later the same day.
The bill is similar to legislation passed by more than half of states in the country, including each adjacent to Illinois. For a number of states, legislation has been followed by spending by school districts and the creation of grants to assist in implementing the policy. Among them, New York allocated $13.5 million in funding for the implementation of its ban, primarily to buy magnetic phone lockup bags.
Though the bill does not allocate any funds, districts in the state have already started spending on solutions, including a nearly quarter-million dollar purchase by Peoria Public Schools in 2024.
The bill is part of a broader legislative agenda pushed by Gov. Pritzker. House committees advanced several of his proposals this week, including regulations on social media companies and allowing community colleges to offer four-year degrees.
House Bill 5511, the Children's Social Media Safety Act, would require social media companies to confirm a user's age through the device's operating system, prohibit companies from sending nighttime notifications to users under 18, establish default privacy settings protecting a minor user's location data and profile information, and allow more parental controls.
The bill passed a House judiciary committee Wednesday on a partisan 13-7 vote. We've been a little bit too late to the game to talk seriously about how do we protect children's mental health and children's safety online, said bill sponsor Rep. Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz, D-Glenview. These conversations I think have been taking place in every household in America.
The House Executive Committee unanimously OK'd an amended version of legislation authorizing Illinois community colleges to offer four-year bachelor's degree programs in high-demand fields. House Bill 5319, sponsored by state Rep. Tracy Katz Muhl, D-Northbrook, would allow community colleges to offer bachelor's degree programs in select areas, provided the school's board of trustees can demonstrate the program would help fill an unmet workforce need in the area the school serves.
Senate Bill 2427 follows a bipartisan, nationwide trend limiting the use of devices. More than 30 states have banned or limited cell phone use in schools.
Evanston/Skokie School District 65 implemented a bell-to-bell policy at the start of the current school year. Elementary school students cannot access personal devices throughout the entire school day. Middle school students are allowed to carry devices with them as long as they are turned off and not seen on school grounds.
On March 23, the District 65 Board of Education approved about $528,279 worth of iPads and accompanying keyboard cases in a 5-2 decision, prompting criticism from several parents.
Locally, parents and advocacy groups are pushing for stronger restrictions. Screen Sense Evanston, a parent-led coalition, advocates for more restrictions in Evanston/Skokie School District 65.
It is not fair to expect children and adolescents to be able to self-regulate and have that level of self-control to resist these intentionally addictive devices, said Willard Elementary School parent Miriam Kendall, the leader of Screen Sense Evanston.
The group formed after parents concerned with excessive screen time and device usage came together to host educational events and community meetings. Last year, the group ran a community book club on The Anxious Generation by social psychologist Jonathan Haidt, which focuses on the shift to a phone-based childhood and rise of mental health issues among adolescents.
Part of growing up is learning how to manage through awkwardness, challenges, social conflict, and if you can avoid all of that at the touch of a button or a screen, that's not healthy developmentally, Kendall said. So banning smartphones in schools gives kids a chance to develop those social skills as well as to learn without distraction.
The bill specifies that wireless communication devices do not include any device that a school district or teacher directly issued to, provided for, or required a student to possess.