New York could pass a statewide, “bell-to-bell” ban on smartphone use in schools within the month, multiple outlets report.
The policy, introduced by Governor Kathy Hochul in January, is one of many rolled in to the state’s 2026 budget proposal. It would allocate some $13 million dollars for school districts to purchase tools restricting school smartphones use.
Polling suggests most New York voters support all-day restrictions on smartphones in schools, but the specifics have proven difficult to iron out. Mayor Eric Adams stopped pursuing cellphone restrictions in New York City schools less than a year ago after encountering logistical issues.
Hochul’s statewide policy addresses three common objections to Adams’ failed district-wide restrictions:
- It provides funding for schools to purchase equipment, like these lockable pouches.
- It requires schools to provide at least one way for students and parents to communicate in an emergency.
- It includes exceptions for students with learning disabilities and those who use their phones as translators.
But it’s not yet clear how much freedom districts would have to establish their own cellphone restrictions.
Some New York officials argue districts should be able to decide whether students can use smartphones during passing periods, lunch or other non-instructional times.
Hochul, on the other hand, supports what she calls a “bell-to-bell ban” — no cellphone use on school property during school hours.
“No smartphones, no earbuds, no cellphones,” Hochul told Telemundo 47 in March. “Here’s why: The mental health of our children, especially in middle school and high school is really declining.”
While introducing the policy, Hochul argued:
There’s no question that smartphone and social media use negatively affect adolescent’s development, mental health and academic achievement.
A 2023 study from Common Sense Media found 97% of teens use their cellphones during school hours, primarily to play video games, browse social media and watch porn.
Students that manage to put their phones down are lured back in with push notifications. The average American teen receives between 192 and 237 every day — about eleven every waking hour. This constant stimuli is so distracting, one study found, that the mere presence of a smartphone in the classroom, even tucked away in a backpack, decreases students’ academic performance.
Once students become distracted by their phone, a 2017 study from the Association of Consumer Research found it can take up to 20 minutes to recover their focus.
Constant distraction, or attention fragmentation, prevents adolescents from developing the parts of their brains responsible for self-control, decision-making and critical thinking, social psychologist Jonathan Haidt writes in his book The Anxious Generation.
Smartphones can also hamper adolescents’ social development. A 2023 surgeon general’s advisory on social media found excessive screentime hampers the development of the amygdala and prefrontal cortex, the parts of the brain controlling “emotional learning, behavior impulse control, emotional regulation and ability to moderate social behavior.”
When Orange County school district in Florida instituted a total cell phone ban in November 2023, teachers and administrators saw improvement in kids’ focus and behavior. One teacher told The New York Times that students seemed “more talkative and collaborative.” Others found students made more eye contact and seemed more engaged. A principal claimed bullying decreased because students could no longer film embarrassing or harmful videos of their classmates to post on social media.
The surgeon general’s advisory cites studies supporting Orange County teachers’ experiences. A small study of college-aged kids found the severity of subjects’ depression lessened when they reduced their social media use to just thirty minutes a day.
Another small study found young adults and adults who abstained from social media for four weeks reported higher levels of subjective wellbeing, like happiness and life satisfaction. The improvements were equivalent to between 25% and 40% of benefits from other mental health interventions like therapy.
New York legislators are still finalizing the city’s 2026 budget — more than two weeks after the April 1 deadline. But outlets like Politico report the school cellphone policy isn’t causing the delay.
If the policy makes it into the state’s finalized budget, as expected, it will become the tenth state to restrict or ban school cellphone use at the state level, joining Arkansas, California, Florida, Indiana, Minnesota, Ohio, Virginia, Louisiana and South Carolina.
To learn more about how you can protect your kids from the harmful effects of social media and excessive screentime, check out the articles linked below.
Additional Articles and Resources
Parent-Run Groups Help Stop Childhood Smartphone Use
Four Ways to Protect Your Kids from Bad Tech, from Social Psychologist Jonathan Haidt
New York City Passes on School Cellphone Ban — For Now
Surgeon General Recommends Warning on Social Media Platforms
Social Psychologist Finds Smartphones and Social Media Harm Kids in These Four Ways
The Harmful Effects of Screen-Filled Culture on Kids
Survey Finds Teens Use Social Media More Than Four Hours Per Day — Here’s What Parents Can Do
Florida School District Bans Cellphones, Gets Results
‘Big Tech’ Device Designs Dangerous for Kids, Research Finds