Want to Limit Student Cell Phone Use? Schools Can Apply for $1 Million Grant to Enforce Restrictions

New Mexico schools are tightening student phone rules with the help of a $1 million state grant program to enforce the restrictions during the school day, KOB 4 reports. The Office of Broadband Access and Expansion and the Public Education Department announced the program in Santa Fe. OBAE is providing the funding, which will help PED support 89 school districts and 100 charter schools that have already implemented the new policy.

State leaders said districts and charter schools can apply for the money once they adopt a policy limiting students’ use of phones and personal wireless communication devices during school hours. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the school anti-distraction bill in April 2025, and the law requires every district and charter school to develop and enforce its own rules, with exceptions for students with medical needs and during emergencies.

"Every student deserves a learning environment where they can focus, engage with their teachers and classmates and reach their full potential free from unnecessary distractions," Public Education Secretary Mariana Padilla said, according to KOB 4. OBAE Director Jeff Lopez said the office’s mission of giving every student internet access now means balancing that access with tools to limit distractions and the harms of social media.

Schools can use the grants to buy network firewalls, phone lockers or locking bags that block Wi-Fi signals. Funding is limited, and OBAE said it will fund applications on a first-come, first-served basis.

Editor’s note: Updated Oct. 31, 2026. This story is now part of Daily Reports, our New Mexico news roundup, and was revised to credit KOB 4’s original reporting. Learn how Daily Reports works in our editorial standards.