HB 2003: Prohibiting Cell phones in class - West Virginia

Committee Substitute for the Committee Substitute → hb2003 s edu am _1 4-7 adopted.htm · 1 edit

MINOR

The bill was amended to expand exemptions for students with personal electronic devices, now including medical orders and other written accommodation plans beyond just IEPs and 504 plans. This change broadens the criteria for when students may legally use devices in classrooms for health-related or accommodation purposes.

ELIGIBILITY

Expanded student exemptions to include medical orders and other written accommodation plans in addition to IEPs and 504 plans, allowing more students with documented needs to use personal electronic devices during instructional time.

Committee Substitute → Committee Substitute for the Committee Substitute · 5 edits

MODERATE

This bill update expands exemptions for students with medical needs and educational plans by adding licensed healthcare professionals as qualified providers and including 504 plans alongside IEPs. It also updates the legislative session title formatting and changes the bill's version tracking information.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains the same regarding cell phone restrictions in classrooms, but eligibility criteria for exemptions were broadened.

ELIGIBILITY

Expanded who can authorize medical exemptions to include licensed healthcare professionals in addition to medical doctors.

Added 504 plans as a qualifying condition for personal electronic device exemptions alongside Individualized Education Plans (IEP).

TECHNICAL

Updated version tracking links from 'sub1' to 'sub2' and reorganized the display order of bill versions.

Changed session title capitalization from 'WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE 2025 REGULAR SESSION' to lowercase 'WEST virginia legislature 2025 regular session'.

TIMELINE

Updated bill introduction date from February 18, 2025 to March 17, 2025, reflecting committee reporting date.

Enrolled Version → Committee Substitute · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill text was reformatted from a legislative document format to a web page display format, with no substantive policy changes to the actual content of HB 2003. The core provisions regarding cell phone restrictions in West Virginia classrooms remain identical, including the 2025-2026 school year implementation date, definitions of personal electronic devices, and requirements for county board policies.

TECHNICAL

Removed original legislative formatting including page numbers, committee substitute headers, and enrolled version markings

Added web page navigation elements, contact forms, and website footer information that are not part of the bill text

Reorganized text layout from vertical legislative format to horizontal web page format with navigation menus

Engrossed Committee Substitute for the Committee Substitute → Enrolled Version · 4 edits · Apr 29, 2025

MODERATE

The bill text was converted from a draft committee substitute format to the final enrolled version, adding official signatures, dates, and a new severability clause while removing navigation elements and formatting artifacts. The substantive policy content regarding cell phone restrictions in classrooms remains largely unchanged, though one exemption definition was expanded to include additional medical documentation types.

Scope change

No change to the bill's scope or applicability; the policy applies to all county boards of education in West Virginia for the 2025-2026 school year.

TECHNICAL

Added official enrollment certification, signatures from legislative clerks, speaker, president, and governor, along with effective date language (90 days from passage).

Removed navigation links, website headers, footers, and formatting artifacts that were present in the draft version but not part of the actual bill text.

REQUIREMENT

Added a new severability clause (subsection f) to ensure that if any part of the policy is found invalid, the remaining provisions remain in effect.

DEFINITION

Expanded the medical exemption criteria to include 'the student's health care provider's medical orders, or other written accommodation plan' in addition to IEP or 504 plans.

Introduced Version → Engrossed Committee Substitute for the Committee Substitute · 7 edits · Apr 10, 2025

MODERATE

The bill was significantly rewritten from a simple prohibition on cell phones in classrooms to a comprehensive policy framework that gives school boards flexibility to create their own rules. The original version imposed strict statewide bans on cell phones, headphones, and smartwatches during class time, while the new version requires schools to develop their own policies with specific minimum requirements for storage, exemptions, and consequences.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded from a direct prohibition to a framework requiring county school boards to develop their own policies, giving local districts more control over implementation while maintaining state-level minimum standards.

REQUIREMENT

Changed from a direct statewide ban on cell phones and headphones to requiring county boards to create their own policies with specific minimum requirements for device storage and use.

Removed the original strict prohibition that banned all cell phones, headphones, and smartwatches from being seen, heard, or used in classrooms during instructional time.

Added requirements for schools to document all policy violations in the West Virginia Education Information System and for Local School Improvement Councils to annually review implementation progress.

DEFINITION

Added formal definitions for 'Personal Electronic Device' (including tablets, laptops, smartwatches), 'Instructional Day', and 'Classroom Setting' to clarify what devices and locations are covered.

EXEMPTIONS

Added specific exemptions for students with documented medical needs or IEP/504 plan requirements, and for work-based learning programs approved by the county board.

ENFORCEMENT

Added detailed requirements for consequences including tiered penalties for first, second, and subsequent offenses, and documentation requirements in the state education information system.

TIMELINE

Added implementation timeline requiring county boards to develop policies by the beginning of the 2025-2026 school year.

Prohibiting Cell phones in class

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