House Bill 14 81 would require local boards of trustees to adopt policies prohibiting students from possessing personal smart devices during the school day, with district discretion on storage methods and narrowly drawn exceptions for health and safety.

Nut graf: The hearing included multiple invited and public witnesses — students, parents, safety advocates and policy researchers — who argued the restriction reduces bullying, improves classroom attention and protects student mental health; districts would retain local control over specific storage and exception mechanisms.

Body: Senator Creighton, citing research on device use during the school day, framed HB 14 81 as an expansion of prior legislation that addressed phone use during instructional time. The bill would move the prohibition to the entire school day (bell to bell) while preserving district discretion on implementation (e.g., pouches, lockers) and explicit exceptions for medical devices and Section 504/IEP accommodations.

Witnesses spoke largely in support. Grayson Gee of the Texas Public Policy Foundation described widespread youth mental‑health harms tied to heavy device use, using the phrase “doom scrolling” to describe compulsive feed consumption and said bell‑to‑bell restrictions free students to engage. Faith Colson, a parent and former educator, said phones are addictive and a classroom distraction: “Phones in classrooms are not helping kids learn, and they're making it harder for teachers to teach.” Stephanie Colson, a 13‑year‑old student, recounted classroom disruptions and cyberbullying videos captured and posted during the school day. Maureen Molack of David’s Legacy Foundation — which advocates on cyberbullying and suicide prevention — testified that personal devices during school hours contributed to harms her group sees in crisis cases and urged a statewide bell‑to‑bell approach.

Several witnesses asked that the bill permit controlled, teacher‑directed short‑term device use for instructional purposes (for instance, to photograph handwritten student work for digital submission); one teacher asked the committee to preserve school discretion to allow brief device access for academic ends.

Ending: After broad testimony and questions, committee members closed public testimony and left HB 14 81 pending for further consideration; senators signaled continuing work with districts on implementation details and medical‑safety exceptions.