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House concurs with Senate on H.480; bill adds school safety, phone‑free policy and other education changes
Summary
The Vermont House concurred in the Senate amendment to H.480, a miscellaneous education bill that includes school safety changes, cardiac response requirements, and a directive for the Agency of Education to develop a model bell‑to‑bell cell‑phone policy.
The Vermont House concurred in the Senate’s proposal of amendment to House Bill 4‑80, a miscellaneous education bill, and ordered the bill to be sent to the governor.
The member from Williston (Representative) reported the Senate’s changes and described the bill’s principal provisions: delayed deadlines for behavioral threat assessment team implementation, clarified roles for school boards and superintendents in policy and procedure development, amended the State Board search timeline for a secretary of education, expanded the Vermont National Guard tuition benefit within the Guard’s existing appropriation, added cardiac emergency planning and athletic emergency action plan requirements to school emergency operations templates, and changed energy performance contracting rules so districts may enter contracts up to 20 years without voter approval.
A major policy addition accepted by the legislature is a direction for the Agency of Education to develop a model policy prohibiting student use of cell phones and non‑school personal electronic devices from arrival to dismissal (a bell‑to‑bell policy). The model policy is to be developed in consultation with the Vermont School Boards Association, the Vermont Independent Schools Association, and a representative of the Vermont Coalition for Phone and Media Free Schools; the AOE must issue the model policy by Jan. 1, 2026, and school boards must adopt policies at least as restrictive by July 1, 2026, for the 2026–27 school year. The provision includes permitted exceptions (medical needs, individualized education program accommodations, administrative approvals for limited academic or co‑curricular use, and McKinney‑Vento homelessness compliance) and requires that if a district fails to adopt a policy, it will be presumed to have adopted the model policy.
Supporters said the phone‑free effort reflects a growing body of school‑level experience showing reduced harassment and improved school culture where phone restrictions are in place. The member from Williston, a classroom teacher, told colleagues the policy grew from years of school‑level experience and testimony and said local schools that have implemented similar rules reported decreased harassment and improved engagement.
Lawmakers also added cardiac response requirements and athletic emergency action planning to emergency operations templates; the AOE, working with the American Heart Association’s Vermont chapter, drew language to require cardiac-response plans for schools with athletic programs. The bill clarifies that the expanded Vermont National Guard tuition benefit remains within the program’s existing appropriation (no new state money).
The House concurred in the Senate’s amendment by voice vote and then ordered H.480 delivered to the governor. The chair reported that the House and Senate education committees and multiple witnesses — including teachers, AOE staff, school administrators and student panels — had contributed to the committee’s work.
What to watch: the AOE must develop the model phone policy by Jan. 1, 2026, and school boards must adopt policies by July 1, 2026; the bill also includes multiple implementation dates for the other education safety and operations provisions.
Votes at a glance - House concurrence in the Senate amendment to H.480: adopted (voice vote). - Motion to deliver H.480 to the governor forthwith: adopted (voice vote).
