Minnesota House approves bill that would prohibit "addictive" social media features for children accounts, require parental consent
The Minnesota House on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved a bill that sets new guardrails for social media accounts for children.
The measure, which passed 132-2, would require parental consent for someone 15 or younger to make an account and limit features bill authors say are addictive, like infinite scrolling, autoplay of videos and push notifications for those users.
"This bill is going to do a lot to protect our kids, and there's a lot more going forward that we can do," said Rep. Peggy Scott, R-Andover. "I think this is an excellent start, and I'm so gratified that it's such a bipartisan effort that everyone in this chamber cares deeply about our kids and what they're exposed to, and we want the best lives for them."
Under the proposal, targeted ads are prohibited and the strongest privacy settings need to be the default. The proposal also empowers parents or children to sue if platforms break the rules.
"That is huge, because most of the highest privacy settings on things like Facebook means that people who aren't their immediate friends cannot see the content, cannot interact with them," said Rep. Andy Smith, DFL-Rochester. "That is huge for kids in our state."
On Tuesday, the House also added an amendment mandating social media companies report to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension if they become aware of any information on their platforms suggesting there could be a "mass violence event."
NetChoice, a trade group representing tech companies like Meta and Google, argues that the legislation requires more data collection on children to verify their age and that the provisions are unconstitutional.
In a letter to a House committee, the group wrote it shares the "genuine concern for the well-being of Minnesota's children online," but that the proposal must be "narrowly technically feasible, and constitutionally sound," and falls short on those points.
The move by Minnesota lawmakers follows a decision earlier this year by a jury in California that found YouTube and Meta to both be negligent in a social media addiction case. A 20-year-old said using those platforms from a young age got her hooked and she was awarded $6 million in damages.
Last year, lawmakers passed legislation mandating warning labels on social media platforms about risks to mental health. If the Senate approves the bill and Gov. Tim Walz signs it into law, the new requirements won't take effect until July 2027.
