California narrows phone ban

California lawmakers narrowed a proposed statewide school cellphone crackdown after resistance from school boards and district administrators collided with a deadline already built into state law. Assembly Bill 1644 had been pitched this spring as a bell-to-bell statewide ban on student smartphone use. By late April, lawmakers amended the bill so it would apply only to districts and charter schools serving students in transitional kindergarten through eighth grade, with implementation delayed until July 1, 2027. Existing law from 2024 still requires every California district, county office of education and charter school to adopt a policy limiting or prohibiting smartphone use by July 1, 2026. ### How did the proposal change? AB 1644 was introduced this year as a push to replace California’s flexible 2024 law with a statewide bell-to-bell rule. An April 15 Assembly Education Committee analysis said the bill would repeal the current framework on July 1, 2027 and require local education agencies to prohibit students from using smartphones while at school or under school supervision. (aedn.assembly.ca.gov) An April 28 amendment narrowed that approach. The revised bill text says only school districts, county boards of education and charter schools serving transitional kindergarten through grade 8 would have to adopt a policy prohibiting smartphone use, and they would have until July 1, 2027 to do it. ### What law is already on the books? (aedn.assembly.ca.gov) Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 3216, the Phone-Free School Act, on Sept. 23, 2024. The law requires every school district, charter school and county office of education to develop a policy by July 1, 2026 that limits or prohibits student smartphone use during school hours. (calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org) AB 3216 also left major operational choices to local officials. The California School Boards Association said in a 2025 guidance note that local educational agencies determine “the extent of such limitation” and how to implement it, while the statute preserves exceptions for emergencies, health needs, individualized education programs and teacher or administrator permission. (gov.ca.gov) ### Why did districts push back on a statewide ban? The California School Boards Association and the Association of California School Administrators argued that districts were already under a state mandate and needed room to tailor policies to local conditions. Courthouse News reported in April that committee members had concerns about communication tied to extracurricular activities and after-school jobs, while ACSA legislative advocate Dorothy Johnson pointed to the existing July 1, 2026 deadline in current law. (publications.csba.org) CSBA’s guidance on AB 3216 also flagged enforcement and cost issues. The group said districts using pouches or boxes to store phones would have to pay for those systems and maintain a plan for quick access during emergencies. ### Who backed the tougher version? Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi, a Torrance Democrat, was among the lawmakers pressing for a stricter statewide rule. (courthousenews.com) An April committee analysis quoted the author’s office as saying AB 1644 would require “clear, consistent ‘bell-to-bell’ policies” with exceptions for safety, health and educational purposes. Assemblymember Josh Hoover, a Folsom Republican and a co-author of the 2024 law, said in April that “it is time for us to go one step further,” according to Courthouse News. (publications.csba.org) Muratsuchi’s office said in an April 15 release that at least 10 states had adopted bell-to-bell smartphone bans in schools. ### What does this mean for schools right now? (aedn.assembly.ca.gov) California districts are still on the clock under the 2024 law. By July 1, 2026, every local educational agency must have a policy in place that limits or prohibits student smartphone use, and that policy must be developed with stakeholder participation and updated every five years. (courthousenews.com) AB 1644, as amended, would add a separate deadline for K-8-serving agencies if it advances through the Legislature. The bill remains in committee, according to California bill-tracking summaries, while districts continue writing local rules on storage, exceptions and enforcement under AB 3216 before the July 1, 2026 deadline. (calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org) (publications.csba.org)