House lawmakers unanimously approved Senate Bill 106 , with a House amendment attached.
The bill, introduced last April and passed without opposition by the State Senate in May, requires all school districts and charter schools in Delaware to create a policy to limit student cell phone use.
The amendment mandates districts and charter schools collect and monitor enforcement data for phone policies implemented. It also asks Delaware’s Education Department to provide model language for schools to follow when creating cell phone policies.
The amendment, from bill sponsor, State Rep. Kim Williams (D-Stanton), also adds data from a state pilot program that provided participating districts with pouches where students could store their phones.
“It'll be up to the (Local Education Authorities) to decide how and where they're going to have the cell phones," she said. "Maybe they'll make (students) keep the cell phones in their lockers; I don't know. But that's the whole point of having the policy developed with the teachers, students, parents, and with some guidance from DOE."
Williams says mandating schools create policies to limit cell phone use is meant to improve educational outcomes and behavior for students.
"I assume that we'll give it a little bit of time, a year or two, and then go back and survey and have conversations with the charter school leaders and the Department of Ed and school districts leaders to see if this bill is actually working," said Williams.
The amended bill heads back to the Senate for a vote. If it clears the Senate again, it heads to Gov. Matt Meyer for his signature.
