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Committee advances school-device bill; amendment to allow parent-paid storage fees fails
Summary
The House Committee on Education advanced Senate Bill 78 with amendments that permit narrowly defined electronic note-takers and school‑sanctioned laptops or tablets, require DOE guidance on storage, and require devices to be powered off and inaccessible during the day. An amendment to let schools charge families a $25–$100 annual storage fee failed 4–8.
The Committee on Education voted to advance Senate Bill 78 on a 12–0 roll call after adopting a package of amendments that clarify what devices schools may allow students to bring and how districts must store them.
Representative Teska introduced an amendment to add “electronic note takers” to the list of allowable school‑safety grant purchases, saying the devices “are note takers, that, are able to record just audio, and then transcribe,” and stressing they are narrowly defined and not internet‑enabled. The committee also approved language directing the Department of Education to publish guidance on how schools may use existing lockers or other resources for storage and a policy requiring that wireless communication…
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