Social media restrictions for teens signed into law by Utah governor
As Gov. On Thursday, Spencer Cox signed the first major social media regulations in the country.
The Legislature passed SB152 and HB311 earlier this month. They are viewed by lawmakers as necessary to combat the alleged harms that social media platforms have enacted on teens. The bills have been met with strong opposition from industry groups, and raised concerns about privacy and freedom of speech.
Cox and other legislative leaders cited a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that showed 57% of teenage girls felt hopeless or sad in 2021. Nearly 1 in 3 considered suicide.
Cox said to lawmakers at a ceremony for the signing of the bills on Thursday, “I’m so proud about the great work you all were able o accomplish together with your peers in the Legislature.” These are the first-of their-kind bills in America, and it’s huge that Utah is leading this effort.”
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SB152, sponsored in part by Cox’s brother, Senator Mike McKell (R-Spanish Fork), requires minors to get parental consent before they sign up for social media. It will go into effect on March 1, 2024. To prevent minors creating accounts without permission, the bill requires that all Utah users be verified their age by companies.
The bill states that platforms can’t rely on government-issued IDs for age verification. It is not clear how companies will do that.
McKell stated that lawmakers worked in close collaboration with advocates to craft the bill, “because it’s our children and we care.” There is a very, really large problem.”
He said, “I believe this is the first stage.” “I am really optimistic with the things I have seen. … We can make a difference and it will start right here in Utah.
SB152 also mandates companies to treat minor accounts differently from adult accounts. This includes limiting their appearance on search results, disabling direct message with certain accounts and preventing the collection or targeting of minors’ data. It also allows for parental control over their children’s accounts.
Rep. Jordan Teuscher (R-South Jordan) stated that “these bills are not the solution in themselves.” These bills are tools that parents can use to their advantage, and that is why we introduced them.
Teuscher is the author of HB311, which gives teens the right to bring private actions against teens for alleged harms. It also adds a legal presumption of social media being harmful to teens. Now, companies will have to prove that their products do not harm teens.
The HB311 bans algorithms and other features that could cause minors to become addicted to social networks.
Major social media companies have not yet taken a public position on the bills. KSL.com was told by a spokesperson for Meta, the parent of Instagram and Facebook, that the company has created dozens of safety features for its products.
KSL.com was provided with a statement from Meta spokesperson saying that teens should be safe online. We’ve created more than 30 tools for teens and their families. These include tools that allow parents to work with teens to limit how much time they spend on Instagram and age verification technology that allows teens to have age-appropriate experiences. When teens join Instagram, we automatically make their accounts private and send them notifications encouraging them to take frequent breaks. We do not allow content that encourages suicide, self-harm, or eating disorders. Of the content we remove, or take action upon, over 99% are identified before it is reported to us.
The statement said, “We’ll continue working closely with experts and policymakers on these important issues.”
NetChoice, an association representing the tech industry, declared the bills unconstitutional. The group claimed that the bills violate the First Amendment by prohibiting anonymous speech online and by restricting adults’ legal access to constitutionally-protected speech.
Nicole Saad Bembridge is the NetChoice Litigation Center’s associate director. She stated that Utah will soon need online services to collect sensitive data about teens and their families. This is not only to verify ages, but also to verify parental relationships. It puts their personal data at risk. People who don’t have the necessary documentation or are unable to provide it will be denied access to crucial information channels.
The Association of National Advertisers stated that the bills also violate First Amendment rights, as they deny minors access advertisements and allow businesses to share messages.
Chris Oswald (executive vice president of the association) stated that the law “limits the ability of older teenagers to get important information they require”, including information about colleges and job opportunities. We encourage other legislators to look at these issues and to think about more nuanced standards. This will allow us to protect younger children while allowing older teens to access the wealth of ad-based information and content online.
The Utah Division of Consumer Protection will establish a system to verify age between now and March 1, 2024, when the bills take effect. Additionally, the division will receive $280,000 in one time funds and $220,000 in ongoing funding to investigate and enforce violations.
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