{"id":520825,"date":"2026-01-16T17:14:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-16T17:14:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/520825\/"},"modified":"2026-01-16T17:14:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-16T17:14:11","slug":"us-state-proposes-cell-phone-law-that-would-ban-the-use-of-mobile-devices-but-only-in-certain-locations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/520825\/","title":{"rendered":"US state proposes ‘cell phone’ law that would ‘ban the use of mobile devices’ \u2014 but only in certain locations"},"content":{"rendered":"

A BILL has been put forward that would see Americans banned from using their cell phones if it becomes a reality.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Devices would only be off-limits<\/a> in specific locations, but such a measure would affect over 480,000 people if it came into effect.<\/p>\n

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\t\t\t\t\t\tThank you!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Lawmakers in Kansas have put forward bills that would see Americans in certain locations banned from using such devicesCredit: KSNT<\/p>\n

Children would be banned from using cell phones in school (stock)Credit: Getty<\/p>\n

A motion has been put forward to ban cell phones in schools <\/a>across Kansas.<\/p>\n

If it comes into force, it would make policies already imposed by school districts redundant.<\/p>\n

And, Kansas would join a slew of states that have already brought in such measures.\u00a0<\/p>\n

States such as Florida<\/a>, Texas<\/a>, Alabama<\/a> and Georgia<\/a> already have policies in place.<\/p>\n

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CRIES ON PRIZE<\/p>\n

Nobel committee hits back as Venezuela hero shares why she gave prize to Don<\/p>\n

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ON EDGE<\/p>\n

Reason Iran ‘paused slaughter’ of protesters as Trump to send forces to Middle East<\/p>\n

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But, the drive to ban cell phones in schools<\/a> has proved to be controversial.<\/p>\n

Kim Whitman, who is part of the Smartphone-Free Childhood US group, believes the power should be in the hands of the state, as reported by the NBC affiliate KSNT-TV.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI believe the state law is necessary because local districts aren\u2019t doing it,\u201d she claimed.<\/p>\n

Whitman warned that districts are putting different policies forward, rather than one cohesive strategy.<\/p>\n

Ann Mah, a former Kansas lawmaker and an ex-member of the Kansas Board of Education, put forward a different argument.<\/p>\n

She warned against a one size fits all strategy.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is where mandates go wrong,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have districts with fewer than 100 kids and more than 45 thousand.\u201d<\/p>\n

There is no timetable regarding the proposed phone ban. <\/p>\n

In Kansas, for any bills to become law, they must be approved by both legislative chambers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Then, it is sent to the Governor \u2013 who can sign it into law or veto it.<\/p>\n

A veto can be overridden if there is a two-thirds majority in both legislative chambers.<\/p>\n

Or, the governor can choose to do nothing.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In some cases, bills can become law automatically if a governor doesn\u2019t act within a specific time period.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But, Kansas Governor, Laura Kelly has suggested she would sign the bill into law.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, politicians in the Michigan House passed a bill that would put curbs on cell phone<\/a> use in schools.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It will now head to the state senate.<\/p>\n

This could mean that school districts may have to create their own cell phone policies.<\/p>\n

But, private schools would be able to enjoy a stay as such measures would only apply to public establishments.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In August 2025, measures tightening cell phone restrictions even further came into force in Florida.<\/p>\n

Elementary and middle school children are banned from using cell phones during the entire school day.<\/p>\n

Legislation closed a loophole that allowed students to use their devices out of the classroom.<\/p>\n

Earlier this month, schools across Oregon were required to implement cell phone bans in line with a law that came into effect.<\/p>\n

New Jersey is the latest state to formalise such a ban.<\/p>\n

This will come into force at the start of the next school year.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI wish this ban had been in place a long time ago,\u201d Governor Phil Murphy said.<\/p>\n

The politician will leave office on January 20.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Kim Whitman, of Smartphone Free Childhood US, has welcomed the billCredit: KSNT<\/p>\n

Ann Mah, a former member of the Kansas Board of Education, warned of the risks such a policy would poseCredit: KSNT\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A BILL has been put forward that would see Americans banned from using their cell phones if it…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":520826,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[19785,611,1053,158,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-520825","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mobile","8":"tag-kansas","9":"tag-mobile","10":"tag-section-newsus-news","11":"tag-technology","12":"tag-united-states","13":"tag-unitedstates","14":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115905905553137733","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/520825","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=520825"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/520825\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/520826"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=520825"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=520825"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=520825"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}