As school starts back up after the recent summer break, and people start getting back into the flow of their everyday school life, many have been noticing the phone rules cracking down a lot more than previous years. The change in attitude of phones is due to a bill passing over the summer, House Bill 959, that was signed July 1, 2025.
House Bill 959 details the safety measures and the new regulations in schools that will attempt to make schools a safer and more productive learning environment. The bill states that students should have their phones stored away throughout the entire school day unless students fall under certain expectations.
Students are not allowed to have access to their phone unless it is allowed by a teacher for educational purposes – even during those times, teachers must be supervising the students. Other than just teacher-allowed time, there are a few exceptions. Students with 504 plans, Individual Education Programs (IEPs), students with special needs or students that need phones in times of medical emergency are allowed to use their phones without repercussions.
However, if students do not fall under one of the exceptions and are caught using their phone during class without permission from a teacher and/or an administrator, they will receive a warning. According to the WCPSS website – if behavior continues, then the student’s phone will be temporarily confiscated and returned at the end of the class. If the student continues their behavior beyond that point, then they will be permanently confiscated from the student and will need a parent or guardian to pick up the phone from the school.
It is important to note that in times of emergencies, students do not need permission to call 911 or alert adults to an emergency. As a part of the official bill, however, Wake County claims no responsibility for phones or personal devices being lost or stolen. However, they do claim the right to search personal devices if they have reason to believe that a student has broken school rules or regulations with the phone bill.
Along with the 959 bill dictating when school devices are appropriate, it also presents policies of what students can and cannot do on the school’s internet or services provided by the county. These new policies reflect older ones that have been seen in some schools for years, even before the newer phone bans. The policies include limiting access to age-appropriate materials and entertainment, remaining and protecting the safety of students when using online communication services. The regulations go deeper with an expressed ban on the unauthorized access to data or information that is strictly admin only, as well as students trying to access websites or social media blocked by the school.
It is the previously mentioned policies and the worry of potential cyberbullying that would constitute a search of a student’s private device. It is, however, important to acknowledge that administrators or teachers cannot search a student’s device unless they have an undeniable idea that they might find evidence of wrongdoing on that student’s device. It is also important to note that most of the time, student’s devices are searched only when there is a strong idea of a possible threat to the greater majority of the school or to the student themselves.
The 959 bill will be first applied during the 2025-2026 school year, no later than Sep. 1. This means that students are now required by law and by Wake County to keep their phones away during the school day and during every class unless a teacher gives permission or the student has specific exceptions by the school. These new regulations are an attempt to make the classroom a safer and more productive learning environment, and in Wake County, that starts with phones.
