All Texas public and charter school students, grades K through 12, are now prohibited from using cell phones and other personal communication devices during the school day. And school districts are scrambling to comply with the new law by the start of classes.

House Bill 1481 was sponsored by 87th District Rep. Caroline Fairly, a 26-year-old first-term Republican from Amarillo. It received unanimous support in the Texas Senate and passed 128-17 in the House with support including Reps. Angie Chen Button of Sachse, Jeff Leach of Plano and Candy Noble of Lucas. 

The bill took effect immediately after being signed in June by the governor.

Fairly said the increasing use of personal devices in Texas schools “poses concerns about their impact on student learning, safety, mental health and overall school environment.”

HB 1481 requires the board of trustees of a school district or the governing body of an open-enrollment charter school to adopt, implement, and ensure the district or school complies with a written policy prohibiting a student from using a personal communication device while on school property during the school day, requires the mandatory policy to establish disciplinary measures to be imposed for violation of the prohibition and authorizes the mandatory policy to provide for confiscation of an applicable personal communication device.

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By Bob Wieland | bwieland@csmediatexas.com