Governor Kay Ivey signed an executive order on July 22, 2026, creating the Governor's Commission on Screen-Based Instruction, a 14-member body that will study how screens are used in Alabama's K-12 classrooms and issue evidence-based recommendations. The commission is charged with delivering a final report to the governor, the Legislature, and the State Board of Education by December 1, 2026, with the goal of informing legislation that could be considered during the 2027 session.
From cell phones to screens: A policy arc
The executive order is the latest in a series of state actions aimed at screen use in educational settings. In 2025, Alabama passed the FOCUS Act (HB 166), which starting with the 2025-2026 school year prohibits students from using wireless communication devices during the instructional day and requires each local board to adopt both a device policy and an internet safety policy. The next year, the Healthy Early Development and Screen Time Act (HB 78) set screen time limits for children from birth through age five in licensed child-care facilities, public kindergarten classrooms, and specific Pre-K classes. Governor Ivey said Alabama was the first state to pass a law limiting screen time for the youngest learners in classrooms and child-care settings.
A subsequent bill, HB 584, introduced in March 2026 by Representative Jeana Ross, would have extended those limits to all K-12 grades. The measure passed the House 98 to 0 on March 31 but died in the Senate when the Legislature adjourned in April. That bill would have required the State Board of Education to establish screen-based instruction standards, created an Instructional Technology Task Force, capped total screen-based instruction at two hours per day, and mandated vision breaks after 20 minutes. It would have also prohibited screen-based instruction from replacing explicit phonics instruction, handwriting, reading of physical texts, manipulative-based mathematics instruction, or teacher-led discussion, and barred continuous self-paced digital coursework as a substitute for teacher-directed instruction. Exceptions included assistive technology under individualized education programs or 504 plans, required assessments, teacher instructional displays, emergency remote instruction, and computer science courses.
A separate bill still alive in the Legislature, HB 376, would require local boards to give parents, upon request, a list of all instructional technology used in a student's classroom and access to the student's school-issued device and browsing history. It would also require the State Board of Education to develop a model policy with age-appropriate screen time limits for each grade level before the 2027-2028 school year.
Who is on the commission
Ivey appointed 14 members to serve until the final report is submitted. The chair is Representative Jeana Ross. Other members include Senator Linda Coleman-Madison; State Superintendent of Education Dr. Eric Mackey; elementary teacher Stephanie Pettis of Mobile County; middle school teacher Laren Hammonds of Tuscaloosa; principal Kelli Fischer of Opelika High School; Houston County Superintendent Brandy White; State Department of Education specialist Misty Wilson; Assistant Superintendent Dr. Frankie Mathis of Saraland; child psychologist Dr. Nashedra Barry of Children's Hospital; parent representative Brooke Gillis of Innovation Depot in Birmingham; technology director Chris Jenks of Tuscaloosa City Schools; clinical associate professor of early childhood education Dr. Cailin Kerch of the University of Alabama; and workforce representative Amanda Salazar from Manufacture Alabama.
How other states have approached screen-based instruction
Alabama is not alone in grappling with these questions. In 2026, six states enacted screen-time-related legislation, according to a review by Whiteboard Advisors. Alabama (H.B. 78) developed evidence-based screen time standards for pre-K, licensed child care, and kindergarten. Iowa (H.F. 2676) capped digital instruction at 60 minutes per day for grades K-5. Tennessee (H.B. 2393) required K-5 districts to prioritize in-person teacher-led instruction. Utah (H.B. 273) directed the State Board to publish a model policy and prohibited screen time in K-3 with limited exceptions. Virginia (S.B. 568) required instruction on screen use and its addictive potential. Maine (L.D. 2052) authorized a study of classroom technology use. Iowa, Tennessee, and Utah included explicit carve-outs for students with IEPs or 504 plans; Alabama and Virginia did not.
Two earlier efforts took a non-binding approach. Kansas established a 36-member Blue Ribbon Task Force on Student Screen Time in July 2024, which issued a report in December 2024. The task force recommended bell-to-bell personal device policies and secure storage of devices during the school day, but stated the recommendations were not mandates and were intended as research-based guidance for districts to adopt voluntarily. Texas passed HB 3489 in 2021, directing the Texas Education Agency to develop model health and safety guidelines for digital device use in public schools. Those guidelines were voluntary and explicitly required consideration of students with intellectual or physical disabilities.
North Carolina took a similar approach. The state's Department of Public Instruction issued non-binding guidance in summer 2025, titled Guidance for Purposeful Screen Use in Schools. The guidance distinguished between active screen use (creating, problem-solving) and passive consumption, and set no hard time limits. Instead, it recommended a gradual release of responsibility by grade level and drew on the American Academy of Pediatrics' 5 Cs framework. It did not reference the state's 2025 cell phone ban law, which left school-issued laptops and tablets untouched.
What the research says
The legislative findings in Alabama's Healthy Early Development and Screen Time Act state that published peer-reviewed research shows excessive screen exposure in children under three is associated with delayed communication skills, impaired problem-solving, and reduced social interaction. The act also notes that the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends little to no screen time for children under two and no more than one hour per day of high-quality, adult-supervised screen use for children ages two through five. Those findings underpin the early childhood standards, but the law does not independently evaluate how the same research applies to K-12 classrooms.
The Kansas Blue Ribbon Task Force reviewed research on personal devices, screen time and mental health, and parental oversight. Its report recommended bell-to-bell personal device policies and secure storage during the school day, but minority statements were filed on several recommendations that passed with notable opposition, and the task force explicitly said the recommendations were not mandates.
The debate over screen time limits is contested. North Carolina's guidance cites research linking unstructured recreational screen use to sleep disruption, reduced attention, and mental health concerns, drawing on the American Academy of Pediatrics' framework. But the guidance explicitly avoids hard time limits, arguing that the purpose and structure of device use matters more than strict caps. This reflects a broader policy debate between prescriptive approaches, as seen in Iowa and Tennessee, and flexible, purpose-driven approaches, as seen in North Carolina.
What comes next
The commission must complete its work and submit a final report by December 1, 2026. The findings are expected to inform legislation that could be considered during the 2027 legislative session. Whether the commission will produce binding limits or non-binding guidance similar to those in Kansas and Texas remains an open question.