Georgia lawmakers have agreed to restrict children’s use of social media

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia could join other states in requiring children under 16 to give their parents explicit consent to create social media accounts.

On Friday, lawmakers gave final approval to Senate Bill 351, which also bans the use of social media on school devices and online services, requires porn sites to confirm that users are 18 or older, and mandates additional education on social media and use by schools. Internet. The House passed the bill on a 120-45 vote, and the Senate approved it on a 48-7 vote.

The bill, which Republican Sen. Jason Anavitarte of Dallas called “transformational,” now goes to Gov. Brian Kemp for his signature or veto.

A number of other states, including Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas and Utah, passed laws last yr requiring parental consent for kids to use social media. In August, a federal judge in Arkansas blocked enforcement of a law requiring parental consent for minors to create latest social media accounts.

Some in Congress are also proposing parental consent for minors.

State Rep. Scott Hilton, a Republican from Peachtree Corners, argued that the state should do more to limit children’s use of social media, saying it causes harm.

“Every rose has a thorn, and this is social media for this generation,” Hilton said. “It’s great for connection and activism, but it’s bad for mental health.”

However, opponents warned that the bill would cause problems. For example, Rep. David Wilkerson, a Powder Springs Democrat, said a social media ban in schools could prevent teachers from showing educationally precious videos on YouTube.

“If we pass this, we will come back to it next year because this bill has too many problems,” Wilkerson said.

The bill states that social media services will have to make “commercially reasonable efforts” to confirm someone’s age by July 1, 2025.

Authorities would have to treat anyone who can’t be verified as a minor. Parents of children under 16 would have to consent to their child joining the service. Social media corporations could be limited of their ability to tailor promoting to children under 16 and the quantity of information they might collect about those children.

To comply with federal regulations, social media corporations already ban children under 13 from registering on their platforms, but children have been shown to easily avoid bans.

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To 95% teenagers children ages 13 to 17 say they use social media platforms, with greater than a 3rd saying they use them “almost constantly,” according to a Pew Research Center study.

The Georgia bill also seeks to shut down pornographic web sites by requiring a digital ID or other government-issued ID. Companies will be held liable if minors are found accessing the sites and might be fined up to $10,000.

“This will protect our children,” said Rep. Rick Jasperse, a Jasper Republican who says age verification will lead porn sites to cut off Georgians’ access. In March, the fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the Texas law, prompting Pornhub to cut off Texans’ access.

The Free Speech Coalition, which represents adult film makers, says the bill could be ineffective because users could mask their location and would have to provide sensitive information. They also argue it’s unconstitutional because there are less restrictive ways to keep children confined and discriminate against certain types of speech. The coalition has sued multiple states over the regulations.

The school social media ban doesn’t include email, news, gaming, online shopping, photo editing and academic web sites. The motion also requires making a model program on the impact of social media for college kids in grades 6-12 and updating existing anti-bullying programs.

The move got here after U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy warned in May that social media had not been proven to be protected for young people.

Murthy called on tech corporations, parents and guardians to take “immediate action to protect children now” and asked tech corporations to share data and increase transparency, and for policymakers to regulate social media for safety, as they do automotive seats and infant formula.

Meta, the parent of Facebook and Instagram, announced in 2022 that it was taking steps to confirm age. Meta says it provides teens ages 13-17 with “age-appropriate experiences” on Instagram, including stopping unwanted contact with unknown adults.

Dozens of U.S. states, including California and New York, are also suing Meta Platforms Inc., alleging that the corporate harms young people and contributes to a mental health crisis amongst young people by knowingly and intentionally designing features on Instagram and Facebook that addict children to her platforms.

Florida recently passed a law banning social media accounts for kids under 14 regardless of parental consent and requiring parental consent for 14- and 15-year-olds.