Oklahoma Bills Would Restrict Student Cellphone Use, Social Media, Sex Ed
Legislation on school chaplains, corporal punishment return.

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OKLAHOMA CITY 鈥 Oklahoma lawmakers filed hundreds of bills affecting education for the next legislative session.
Oklahoma Voice collected some of the top trends and topics that emerged in legislation related to students, teachers and schools. The state Legislature will begin considering bills once its 2025 session begins Feb. 3.
Bills would restrict minors鈥 use of cellphones and social media

As expected, lawmakers filed multiple bills to limit student cellphone use in public schools, an issue that leaders in both chambers of the Legislature have said is a top priority this year.
The House and Senate each have a bill that would prohibit students from using cellphones during the entire school day. Some while others allow cellphone access in between classes.
After , Gov. Kevin Stitt that have done so.
from Education Committee vice chair Sen. Ally Seifried, R-Claremore, would require all districts to ban students from accessing their cellphones from the morning bell until dismissal, and it would create a $2 million grant program to help schools enact phone-free policies.
from a House leader on education funding, Rep. Chad Caldwell, R-Enid, would prohibit student cellphone use while on school premises.
Multiple bills target children鈥檚 social media use. Sen. Kristen Thompson, R-Edmond, aims to ban social media accounts for anyone under 16 with and, with , to deem social media addictive and dangerous for youth mental health.
A from Seifried would outlaw social media companies from collecting data from and personalizing content for a minor鈥檚 account, which a child wouldn鈥檛 be allowed to have without parent consent
from Sen. Micheal Bergstron, R-Adair, would require districts to prohibit the use of social media on school computers or on school-issued devices while on campus. from Sen. Darcy Jech, R-Kingfisher, would allow minors or their parents to sue a social media company over an 鈥渁dverse mental health outcome arising, in whole or in part, from the minor鈥檚 excessive use of the social media platform鈥檚 algorithmically curated service.鈥
School chaplain bill reemerges
Multiple lawmakers have refiled a bill seeking to enable . A version of the controversial bill but .
Its original author, Rep. Kevin West, R-Moore, refiled it as . Sen. Shane Jett, R-Shawnee, and Sen. Dana Prieto, R-Tulsa, filed similar school chaplain bills with and .
More restrictions suggested for sex education, gender expression
Another unsuccessful bill returning this year is legislation that would have families opt into sex education for their children instead of opting out, which is the state鈥檚 current policy.
Students wouldn鈥檛 be allowed to take any sex education course or hear a related presentation without written permission from their parents under from Prieto, from Danny Williams, R-Seminole, and from Rep. Tim Turner, R-Kinta.
Sen. Dusty Deevers, R-Elgin, would have any reference to sex education and mental health removed from health education in schools with .
Prieto鈥檚 bill also would exclude any instruction about sexual orientation or gender identity from sex education courses. It would require school employees to notify a child鈥檚 parents before referring to the student by a different name or pronouns.
Other bills similarly would limit students鈥 ability to be called by a different name or set of pronouns at school if it doesn鈥檛 correspond to their biological sex.
顿别别惫别谤蝉鈥 would bar teachers from calling students by pronouns other than what aligns with their biological sex or by any name other than their legal name without parent consent. Educators and fellow students could not be punished for calling a child by their legal name and biological pronouns.
Rep. Gabe Woolley, R-Broken Arrow, filed a .
No public school could compel an employee or volunteer to refer to a student by a name or pronoun other than what corresponds with their sex at birth under from Sen. David Bullard, R-Durant, nor could any printed or multimedia materials in a school refer to a student by another gender.
Corporal punishment in schools
Once again, Oklahoma lawmakers will consider whether to outlaw of students with disabilities. State law currently prohibits using physical pain as discipline on children with only the most significant cognitive disabilities.
In 2020, the state Department of Education used its administrative rules to ban corporal punishment on any student with a disability, but similar bills have failed to pass the state Legislature, drawing frustration from child advocates.
Sen. Dave Rader, R-Tulsa, was an author of last year鈥檚 bill to prohibit corporal punishment of students with any type of disability. He filed again for consideration this session.
from Rep. John Waldron, D-Tulsa, would require schools to report to the Oklahoma State Department of Education the number of times they administer corporal punishment along with the age, race, gender and disability status of the students receiving it. The state Department of Education would then have to compile the information in a report to the Oklahoma Commission on Children and Youth.
is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oklahoma Voice maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Janelle Stecklein for questions: info@oklahomavoice.com.
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