School cellphone restrictions advance, E-verify mandate heard

By Fred Knapp , Senior Reporter/Producer Nebraska Public Media

3 de Marzo de 2025 a las 17:00 ·

Nebraska Capitol (Photo by Fred Knapp, Nebraska Public Media News)

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Nebraska schools would be required to have policies restricting students’ cellphone use under a bill advancing in the Legislature. And a public hearing was held Monday on a proposal to require employers to use a federal system to verify employees’ immigration status before they can work.

Sen. Rita Sanders is the lead sponsor of the cell phone bill, LB140. It requires schools to prohibit students’ use of cellphones and other personal communications devices during instructional time, with some exceptions.

Sanders said the schools in Bellevue, which she represents, adopted restrictions beginning this year. Bellevue prohibits students’ use of phones during class periods, but allows them at lunchtime and when students are in the hallway changing classes. Sanders said the policy has been well-received, and aims to combat both distraction and mental health problems.

“Probably the most feedback comes from the teachers that are so excited that they can get back to teaching again," she said. "But the numbers that we have seen in a lot of the research -- what concerns me is the mental health issue. There are also issues with being on the screen too long for teenagers that approximately eight hours a day on a screen, and the bullying that comes with that when they're on."

While the bill requires schools to adopt policies, it does not specify what those policies should be. Sen. Jana Hughes said that leaves it up to local school boards.

“You could potentially say, ‘You know what, all cell phones have to be in a locker all the school day, 3-330. Others are doing it just in the classroom -- that you can come in, you put it in a little cubby by the door. Or some schools, you just have to not have it on your body. It could be in your backpack or in the locker,” she said.

Sen. Ben Hansen said restrictions would help students concentrate. He cited a study he said found it took them 20 minutes to refocus on a lesson after each electronic interruption.

“So every time their Apple Watch buzzes, every time they feel their phone in their pocket buzz, every time they hear a ding, very similar to a Pavlov's dog, when that bell goes off, it takes them 20 minutes,” he said.

Sen. Terrell McKinney said he didn’t oppose the bill. But he wondered about how any restrictions would be enforced.

“It's just something to think about, that we might see an uptick in suspensions or referrals or something else, at least in the first year or two, to like, get this implemented,” he said.

Sen. Danielle Conrad celebrated the bill’s bipartisan support.

“We know from common sense and personal experience, many of us as parents, that we're all really struggling to help figure out what the boundaries are and how to strike the right balance when it comes to children's interactions with cell phones and Big Tech,” she said.

Senators then voted 44-0 to give the bill first round approval.

Monday afternoon, the Business and Labor Committee heard a proposal, LB532 by Sen. Kathleen Kauth, to require employers use the federal e-verify database to check potential employees’ immigration status before they begin working.

Sen. Jane Raybould asked if people working illegally is a big problem in Nebraska. Kauth said the bill would be a start to tracking that.

“A lot of this is anecdotal. So I have people emailing me and saying, Hey, I was taken advantage of I hired a roofing company and they're gone, and I didn't hear anybody speaking any language I even understood.’ I have businesses who have said, ‘Well, we are desperate for employees, so sometimes we just don't ask.’ I can't quantify the actual issue, because we don't have this kind of program in place,” she said.

Marilyn Asher of Omaha was among those testifying in support of the bill. Asher said the remodeling company she and her husband used to run faced unfair competition from companies that paid undocumented workers in cash and did not deduct income taxes.

“My husband and I have nothing against these people as individuals, but our state needs to stand up to the practices of employers who are allowing the erosion of our financial infrastructure by illegally hiring those who do not pay taxes,” she said.

Opposing the bill for a coalition of farm groups including the Nebraska Dairy Association, Kris Bousquet said it would make the worker shortage worse.

“Milking cows and providing husbandry to other species of livestock are incredibly demanding tasks," he said. "Finding people that are willing and able to perform these jobs is challenging enough, and if those jobs go unfilled, our livestock producers are faced with serious production restrictions and animal welfare issues."

Bousquet said the solution is a federal guest worker program. Kauth had a different idea.

“What I'm hearing is, ‘Well, we can't get anyone else to do this work, so we're going to take whoever we can get.' And I would like to reiterate, we owe it to Nebraska citizens to make sure they have access to those jobs," she said. "If you are getting out of prison and you need a fresh start, what better place than on a ranch or on a farm or somewhere doing something different than you've ever done? And milking a cow might not seem like the worst thing in the world, because it is good, honest labor."

Testifying neutral on the bill for the state chamber of commerce and other business groups, Hunter Traynor questioned if it would be effective.

“E-verify is by no means a foolproof solution, and has been shown to be largely unreliable and frequently circumvented,” he said.

As introduced, the bill would cover all employers. An amendment suggested by Kauth would limit it to those with 25 or more employees. The committee took no immediate action on the bill.