LISTEN: Legislators propose bill tackling cellphone use in schools

SALT LAKE CITY — Two state representatives introduced a bill Monday set to give school districts more power to restrict cellphone use.

Tune in at 10:05!

 

Utah Sen. Lincoln Fillmore (R-South Jordan) and Rep. Douglas Welton (R-Payson) are proposing this K-12 legislation for the 2025 General Session. Fillmore joined KSL at Night to discuss what this bill entails.

Listen to the full conversation 👇

 

This bill is set to improve students’ mental health, social health, and educational health, Fillmore said. 

He told KSL at Night co-hosts Rusty Cannon and Taylor Morgan that so far, state law is silent on the subject of cellphone restrictions in schools. 

“But I want to change the default, because right now the default is nothing,” he said. 

Rep. Welton, a current educator, and Fillmore, a former educator, both see the negative impact cellphones have on learning environments, mental health, and teacher’s ability to “effectively teach,” Fillmore said. 

He says that negative impact is growing, which inspired him to take action. 

“From a legislative standpoint, I want to preserve the ability for local schools, local school boards, local districts, to be able to collaborate with their parents, their teachers and their students to find the right policy.”

Fillmore says the policy wouldn’t ban cellphone use across the state. Rather, it would ask school districts to collaborate with their community to come to cellphone use decisions. 

“It doesn’t bother me that local school districts might make different decisions,” he said. “There’s space in this bill for a local school district to say ‘never mind, we totally disagree, we’re going to allow unfettered use of cellphones in this school.'”

Feedback 

Fillmore said overall, feedback on this bill has been positive. He shared a story that the principal of Granger High School in Granite School District shared with him. At Granger, every day, from bell to bell, they have their students put their cellphones in a pouch. 

“They are nine days into this. The principal reported that teachers come to him and tell him ‘wow, we are moving through our curriculum so much faster,'” Fillmore recalled.

He said the principal reported hearing noisy lunch hours, where students socialized with other instead of staring at their phones. 

There’s been one main concern parents have expressed to Fillmore. That concern is how they will get ahold of their kids in emergency cases.

“I taught around the turn of the century, and this was not an issue.” Fillmore said. “You can work that out with your local school district.”