State Lawmakers Looking to Pass "Bell-to-Bell" Ban on Cell Phones in Schools

Thursday, March 5th, 2026 -- 10:01 AM

(Corrinne Hess, Wisconsin Public Radio) Wisconsin became the 36th state to implement cell phone restrictions for schools in October, but legislators say it didn’t go far enough to support educators or student mental health.

According to Corrinne Hess with the Wisconsin Public Radio, Wisconsin Act 42 requires school boards to adopt policies by July 1, 2026, that “generally prohibit pupils from using wireless communication devices during instructional time.”

A new Republican proposal would require schools to instead adopt a “bell-to-bell” ban on cell phones by July 1, 2027. The bill adds to the current law that a wireless device policy “may include the use of pouches or other storage devices for wireless communication devices or a prohibition on possession of a wireless communication device on school premises.”

State Rep. Lindee Rae Brill, R-Sheboygan Falls, who co-authored the bill after serving on the Speaker’s Task Force on Protecting Kids, said this is something superintendents across the state are asking for.

Brill testified about the bill on Tuesday during the Senate Committee on Education. “I had one superintendent tell me a story about a student who had her phone taken away because she had it during the time she wasn’t supposed to, and she was so visibly upset she threw up,” Brill said.

“We have a real attachment issue to phones in our state, in our nation,” Brill continued. “And we can turn our backs on it and say we’re over legislating. Or we can listen to the superintendents and teachers who see it day in and day out.”

Sen. Joel Kitchens, R-Sturgeon Bay, who was one of the authors of Wisconsin Act 42, said he wanted to include this language in the original law but worried about pushback.

But now, after hearing from educators, Kitchens said he worries the original law doesn’t go far enough. Kitchens said since smartphones and social media became prevalent in 2010 the mental health of young people across the world has rapidly declined, particularly among young girls.

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