Legislation

AR

Restrictions on the use of social media by kids

CA

The California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act

To create the protection of minors from distribution of harmful material act; to establish liability for the publication or distribution of material harmful to minors on the internet; and to require reasonable age verification

DE

Delaware HB 265

This act requires a commercial entity that knowingly or intentionally provides pornography and other materials defined as harmful to minors to verify the age of individuals accessing the material. Civil liability and a civil penalty are imposed on commercial entities that fail to comply with verification requirements. Additionally, an internet provider or user of an interactive computer service on the internet is not subject to liability. This act is modeled after similar laws in Virginia, Utah, and Louisiana.

FL

Social Media Use for Minors

Requires social media platforms to prohibit minors from creating new accounts, terminate accounts & provide additional options for termination of such accounts, use reasonable age verification methods to verify ages of account holders, & disclose specified policies & provide specified resources, measures, & disclaimers; authorizes DLA to bring actions for violations under Florida Deceptive & Unfair Trade Practices Act; provides penalties; provides for private causes of actions; provides certain social media platforms are subject to jurisdiction of state courts.

FL

Online Access to Materials Harmful to Minors

Requires commercial entity that publishes or distributes material harmful to minors on websites & applications to perform reasonable age verification, prevent certain access, & provide for reporting unauthorized or unlawful access; prohibits retention of personal identifying information; authorizes DLA to bring action under Florida Deceptive & Unfair Trade Practices Act for violations; provides civil penalties; provides for private causes of action; provides certain commercial entities are subject to jurisdiction of state courts.

IL

Adult Content Age Verification Act

Creates the Adult Content Age Verification Act. Defines terms. Provides that a commercial entity that knowingly and intentionally publishes or distributes material harmful to minors on the Internet from a website that contains a substantial portion of material harmful to minors shall be subject to civil penalties if the entity fails to perform reasonable age verification methods to verify the age of individuals attempting to access the material. Provides that the Attorney General may investigate alleged violations and initiate a civil action for an injunction and to assess civil penalties. Provides that the civil penalties shall be deposited into the Cyber Exploitation of Children Fund, which shall be expended for the investigation of cybercrimes involving the exploitation of children and for no other purpose. Amends the State Finance Act to make a conforming change.

IN

Age Verification for Material Harmful to Minors

Age verification for material harmful to minors. Requires an adult oriented website operator that displays material harmful to minors to use a reasonable age verification method to prevent a minor from accessing an adult oriented website. Creates a cause of action to permit: (1) the parent or guardian of a child harmed by a violation of the age verification requirement to obtain monetary damages, injunctive relief, and reasonable attorney's fees; and (2) any other person to bring an action to obtain injunctive relief and reasonable attorney's fees. Prohibits a person that conducts age verification from retaining the identifying information of an individual seeking to access an adult oriented website that displays material harmful to minors, and permits an individual whose identifying information is retained to bring an action to obtain monetary damages, injunctive relief, and reasonable attorney's fees.

IN

Minor Use of Mobile Devices and Social Media

Minor use of mobile devices and social media. Requires the manufacturer of a mobile smart device that incorporates an adult content filter and that is sold in Indiana after January 1, 2025, to configure the operating system of the mobile smart device: (1) such that the adult content filter is enabled upon activation of the mobile smart device; and (2) in a manner that reasonably ensures that a minor cannot disable the adult content filter. Requires a social media provider (provider) that receives a request for creation of an account with the provider's social media service to: (1) determine the age of the individual requesting creation of the account; (2) if the provider determines that the individual is a minor, create the account only if the provider receives written consent to creation of the account from the minor's parent, guardian, or custodian; and (3) if the provider creates an account for the individual, electronically provide specified information to the minor's parent, guardian, or custodian.

IN

Age Verification for Material Harmful to Minors

Requires an adult oriented website operator that displays material harmful to minors to use a reasonable age verification method to prevent a minor from accessing an adult oriented website. Creates a cause of action to permit: (1) the parent or guardian of a child harmed by a violation of the age verification requirement to obtain monetary damages, injunctive relief, and reasonable attorney's fees; and (2) any other person to bring an action to obtain injunctive relief and reasonable attorney's fees. Prohibits a person that conducts age verification from retaining the identifying information of an individual seeking to access an adult oriented website that displays material harmful to minors, and permits an individual whose identifying information is retained to bring an action to obtain monetary damages, injunctive relief, and reasonable attorney's fees.

LA

PAVE Act

"Any commercial entity that violates this Section may be liable for a civil penalty, to be assessed by the court, of not more than five thousand dollars for each day of violation to be paid to the Department of Justice, in order to fund the investigation of cyber crimes involving the exploitation of children."

LA

Louisiana HB 440

To provide for liability for the publishing or distribution of material harmful to minors on the internet; to provide for reasonable age verification; to provide for legislative intent; to provide for individual rights of action; to provide for attorney fees, court costs, and punitive damages; to provide for exceptions; to provide for definitions; to provide for an effective date; and to provide for related matters.

MI

Michigan HB 5009

The bill aims to regulate material harmful to minors and provide remedies. It requires age verification to visit adult-only pornographic websites.

MS

Mississippi SB 2346

Material harmful to minors; provide for liability for any entity that distributes on the internet without age verification.

MT

Montana SB 544

An act revising internet laws related to material harmful to minors; providing for liability for the publishing or distribution of material harmful to minors on the internet; providing for reasonable age verification; providing for individual rights of action; providing for attorney fees, court costs, and punitive damages; providing for exceptions; requiring a report by the department of justice for enforcement activity; providing for a fee; providing definitions; and providing a delayed effective date.

NC

Commercial Publication and Distribution of Material Harmful to Minors

Mandates age verification for commercial publication and distribution of material harmful to minors, and it allows for a private right of action and the use of commercially available databases for age verification. 

OH

Innocence Act

Use of false identifying information to access materials that are obscene or harmful to juveniles, a misdemanor of the fourth degree

SC

Child Online Safety Act

A bill to amend the South Carolina code of laws by adding Section 39-5-190 so as to provide definitions, to provide that it is unlawful for an operator to make a pornographic website available to persons under the age of eighteen, to provide that the attorney general shall create certain procedures, and to provide for a private right of action.

SC

Social Media Regulation Act

A bill to amend the South Carolina code of laws by adding Article 9 to Chapter 5, Title 39 so as to provide definitions; to provide that a social media company may not permit certain minors to be account holders; to provide requirements for social media companies; to provide that a social media company shall provide certain parents or guardians with certain information; to provide that a social media company shall restrict social media access to minors during certain hours; to provide for consumer complaints; to provide that the consumer services division has authority to administer and enforce certain requirements; to provide for an annual report; to provide for a cause of action; and to provide that certain waivers and limitations are void.

TX

Liability for allowing minors to access pornographic material

This legislation would ban minors under 18 from viewing explicit content online by requiring distributors and publishers of explicit content to require 18+ commercially reasonable age verification in order to view content.

UT

Children's Device Protection Act

This bill requires a tablet or a smartphone (a device) manufactured on or after January 1, 2025, to automatically enable a filter upon device activation by a minor; requires the filter enabled for minors at activation to: prevent a minor user of the device from accessing material that is obscene; and allow adult users and parents or legal guardians to deactivate and re-activate the filter with a password; permits the attorney general to bring civil actions against manufacturers of devices that do not comply with this bill; permits private civil actions by parents and guardians of minors against manufacturers and others who violate provisions of this bill; and makes it a criminal offense for any person, with the exception of a parent or legal guardian, to enable the removal of the filter on a device in the possession of a minor.

UT

Utah Social Media Regulation Act

The bill requires social media platforms to verify the age of any Utah residents using the platform and mandates parental consent for Utah users under the age of 18 to open and maintain social media accounts

VA

Civil liability for publishing or distributing material harmful to minors on the Internet

Creates a civil cause of action for any commercial entity that knowingly or intentionally publishes or distributes on the Internet material harmful to minors.