DOYLESTOWN, Pa. — Governor Josh Shapiro signed Senate Bill 1014 into law on Monday at Lenape Middle School in Doylestown, in the Central Bucks School District, making Pennsylvania's bell-to-bell school phone ban official. The law takes effect immediately as Act 117 of 2026.
Source: Lehigh Daily
Under the law, every public, charter, cyber charter and private school must adopt a written policy barring student use of personal internet-capable devices for the entire school day — including lunch, recess and the time between classes — with each policy due by the start of the 2027-28 school year. Schools will send their plans to the Pennsylvania Department of Education for review.
Source: Chalkbeat Philadelphia
Each school's governing body decides how phones are kept out of use — how they are stored and how the rule is enforced — and the law does not require a school to take or collect a student's phone. Shapiro said students need to spend less time on their phones and more time on learning and on each other, face to face.
Source: Lehigh Daily
The law carries exceptions: students with individualized education plans or medical needs that require a device, students learning English who use a phone for translation, special occasions such as field days and science fairs, and lessons where a teacher asks to use devices with administrative support.
Source: KYW Newsradio, via The Los Angeles Post
The bill passed with broad bipartisan support — the Senate approved it 47-3 on October 21 after the House passed it 141-62. The Pennsylvania State Education Association backed it: its president, Aaron Chapin, said the bill frees students 'from the constant disruptions of cellphones and mobile devices during the school day' and takes 'an essential step toward reducing distractions'. The Capital-Star reported the law will reach more than 1.7 million K-12 students across the state.
Source: Glenside Local
Monday's signing is the final step that turned the measure the legislature passed last week into binding law; school policies themselves are due by the start of 2027-28, so most Pennsylvania classrooms will feel the change next school year, not this week.