Mark Tisdel | Bell-to-Bell Ban: Fighting to Keep Smartphones Out of Schools

State Rep. Mark Tisdel of Rochester Hills, serving on the Michigan House, is renewing his push to ban cell phones in schools after his original House Bill 4141 failed to pass, dying on a 53–45–12 vote despite prior bipartisan support and even being spotlighted in Governor Whitmer’s State of the State address. Tisdel says he’s going back to the drawing board to rewrite the bill with stronger language, aiming for a full “bell-to-bell” ban on smartphones across K–12 schools, while still allowing emergency or "dumb phone" exceptions. He’s also offering to visit classrooms across the state to talk directly with students about the issue, framing it as a real-world lesson on the legislative process.