A bill to regulate students’ use of cell phones in public schools sailed through the N.C. House Tuesday.

At present, there is no statewide statute regarding cell phone use by students in public schools, but House Bill 87 would require governing bodies of public school units to adopt a policy on use of cell phones by students during instructional time.

If the bill becomes law, it will be effective for the 2025-26 school year.

According to information from the N.C. School Boards Association, 77 of the state’s 100 counties have policies on cell phone use by students in schools.

Vance County is one of those counties; while there are limitations to using phones or other wireless communication devices, the policy states that students may use such devices for instructional purposes, when the teacher authorizes – and supervises – such use.

Vance County Schools policy states the following:

“Administrators may authorize individual students to use wireless communication devices for personal purposes when there is a reasonable need for such communication. Teachers and administrators may authorize individual students to use the devices for instructional purposes, provided that they supervise the students during such use.

Although use may be permitted, before, during and after school, use of cellular phones and other wireless communication devices may be prohibited on school buses when noise from such devices interferes with the safe operation of the buses. In addition, elementary and middle school students who participate in after-school programs are prohibited from using wireless communication devices during such programs.”

House Bill 87 would require school districts to adopt a cell phone-free education policy which would eliminate or severely restrict student access to cell phones during instructional time. Parents would have to be notified at the beginning of each school of the cell phone-free education policy adopted by the governing board. Likely exempt from the requirements would be remote charter academies, remote academies and virtual charter schools participating in the virtual charter school pilot program.