One Mississippi senator wants a state law that would crack down on students using cell phones during class.
The bill requires public school districts, public charter schools and other state high schools have a cell phone policy by next January or lose a day’s worth of their state funding provided for each day a policy is not in place.
Sen. Briggs Hopson District 23 (Issaquena, Warren and Yazoo counties) introduced the bill that would require a policy banning the possession of or restricting the use of cell phones by students during the day or while under the supervision and control of a school employee.
The bill also applies to Forrest County Agricultural High School, the Mississippi Schools for the Deaf and the Blind, the Mississippi School for the Arts and the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science.
The bill would not affect private schools. Individual private schools set their own policies about electronic devices, said Barrett Donohoe, executive director of the Midsouth Association of Independent Schools.
The gist of policies for private schools in northeast Jackson and Madison is a cell phone should be turned off and out of sight during the school day. Most of the policies also apply to Apple watches and other electronic devices.
Marlana Walters, whose son and daughter attend Madison Central High School in Madison, is OK with her children going without the use of their cell phones during the school day.
“I think kids have enough to worry about without the ringing and buzzing of their cell phones,” she said. “They should be focused on their classwork when they’re at school.”
Walters believes students should interact with each other and without their cell phones. “I sometimes just want them to carry on a conversation with each other,” she said.
Hopson’s bill would allow a school or school district to include in its policy exceptions so a student could possess or use a school cell phone in case of an emergency or in response to a perceived threat or danger or when a licensed advanced practice registered nurse, physician or surgeon determines the use of a phone is medically necessary for the health or well-being of the student.
Another exception is the use of a cell phone if it is required for a student’s individualized education program.
The bill allows that “students may be suspended or expelled from attendance at school for sufficient cause; however, in no case may sufficient cause for suspension or expulsion consist of only a violation of the cell phone possession and use policy developed and implanted under this section, except that suspension may be used as a disciplinary measure of last resort.”
The bill requires school districts and schools to adopt a cell phone policy and send it to the state Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) no later than Jan. 1, 2027.
The bill would give MDE the authority to deduct one day’s worth of a school’s or district’s funds under the total funding formula for each day after Jan. 1, 2027, that a school or district is noncompliant with the phone policy.
Hopson’s bill was referred to the Senate Education Committee on Jan. 9. The next step in the legislative process is for the committee to vote to move it out of committee and on to the floor of the Senate for debate and a vote; if passed in the Senate, the bill would go to the House of Representatives for the same process.
Currently, public school districts set their own policies for cell phones and other electronic devices, and the Mississippi Department of Education does not keep up with them.
Both Jackson Public Schools (JPS) and the Madison County Schools already have in place policies about electronic devices, which pertain to cell phones smart watches, such as Apple watches and other electronic devices .
The electronic devices policy for the Madison County Schools states:
- Cell phones, smart watches and other electronic devices that can be used to access the internet and games, text, video, and/or to record are not to be utilized in elementary schools or on buses unless approved by the administration.
- Electronic devices including cell phones and smart watches may be brought and utilized on school campuses at the principal’s discretion as it relates to the instructional process.
- In the classroom, headphones and/or earbuds may only be used with teacher approval.
- The district does not accept responsibility for lost or misplaced electronic devices; and the district will not be held responsible for any fees associated with the use of personal devices.
- Unauthorized use of a cell phone or other electronic device during the school day or on the bus, may subject a student to disciplinary action which may include the following: corporal punishment, detention, in-school detention or out of school suspension
- Possession of cell phones and other electronic equipment is strictly prohibited in any room during testing. Violation of this policy during state mandated testing shall invalidate the student’s test.
- If an electronic device is confiscated for unauthorized use, it will be returned only to the parent or legal guardian.
Under the JPS’ policy, students are allowed to bring personal electronic devices to school, however, “they should not have cell phones on their person, including but not limited to pockets, socks, jackets, or any other accessible location after the intake process.”
Usage on a school bus is permitted as long as the device is silent and does not disrupt others and the use does not otherwise violate the JPS Code of Scholar Conduct such as recording or taking pictures of others, bullying, viewing or sharing inappropriate content.
Mississippi would not be the first state to pass legislation concerning phones and schools.
According to Education Week, at least 33 states and the District of Columbia require school districts to ban or restrict students’ use of cellphones in schools. Other states recommend local districts enact their own bans or restrictive policies.
The Pew Research Center reported that a survey conducted in fall 2025 showed that 41 percent of U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 said they support banning middle and high school students from using cellphones during class.
About half of teens did not support the ban, and 9 percent were not sure.
A separate survey conducted by the Pew Research Center in summer 2025 showed that 74 percent of U.S. adults support banning middle and high school students from using cellphones during class.
