Governor Ferguson announces key legislative priority to ban cellphones in schools statewide

SEATTLE - Today Governor Bob Ferguson announced a top legislative priority for the upcoming session: Banning cellphones in schools statewide during school hours. The proposed "Away for the Day" policy would ban smart devices, including smartphones and smart watches, from the first to last bell in K-12 public schools in Washington state.

Video of the event is available here, and photos are available here.

In the United States, 95% of teenagers have smartphones - and 97% of these teenagers use them during school. Studies show teenagers spend, on average, roughly a quarter of their school day on their cellphones - more than 41 instructional days over the course of a school year.

One-third of public K-12 teachers nationwide say students being distracted by cellphones is a major problem in their classroom, according to Pew Research Center. Research shows school-day phone use negatively impacts students' learning, ability to focus, attendance and mental and emotional health. Without phones, students are more engaged socially and academically.

"Our kids are missing what's written on the whiteboard and focusing more on memes instead of math because of digital distractions," Governor Ferguson said. "Science supports a phone-free school environment. No single policy can solve every challenge in education, but this one will make a big difference in our students' social and academic engagement. I won't let Washington be the last state in the nation to step up for our kids."

Over the next three months, Governor Ferguson and his team will travel across the state, meeting with students, teachers and other stakeholders on the details of this policy. Those discussions will include enforcement options, support needed by districts, what narrow exceptions - such as for IEPs, 504 plans and medical needs - are appropriate, and emergency communications plans.

Governor Ferguson expects to announce a detailed proposal by Sept. 15. He expects to prefile the Governor Request Bill the day prefiling opens on Dec. 7. School districts will implement the policy in September 2027.

Cellphone policy in Washington state and nationwide

At least 31 states and the District of Columbia now restrict students' use of cellphones in schools, according to Education Week. Of those states, 22 have a bell-to-bell ban.

Washington has taken incremental steps to discourage phones in schools. Approximately 75% of school districts in Washington state have policies in place to limit the use of cellphones in classrooms, according to the Office of the Superintendent for Public Instruction.

A national report card gives Washington an "F" for our state policy.

Leadership on protecting young people

Governor Ferguson has taken multiple steps to protect youth against the harm of cellphones. During the 2026 legislative session, Governor Ferguson signed a new law that helps lay the groundwork for regulating cellphones in schools. He also successfully proposed a new law that provides safeguards for the public - particularly kids - when using AI companion chatbots. As Attorney General, he took social media companies to court to change their addictive algorithms and hold them accountable for the harm they have done to kids.