Bill that would have banned Texas minors from social media misses key deadline

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A bill that would have banned minors from having a social media account has missed a deadline to pass in the Texas Senate.

House Bill 186, filed by Rep. Jared Patterson, R-Frisco, sailed through the House 116-25 in May, but never received a vote in the Senate several days after a slew of teenagers spoke against it during a Senate committee hearing. The contents of the bill could still be attached to another as an amendment or as part of a budget stipulation, but it is unlikely this late into the legislative session, which ends Monday.

The proposal, the most far-reaching of the bills filed to address online dangers this session, would prohibit minors from creating accounts on social media sites, such as Twitter, TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat and more, and require users to verify their ages. Companies would have to comply with the ban by April 2026.

The bill would also allow parents to request the deletion of their child’s existing social media account, and a company must comply within 10 days.

The potential failure of the social media ban for minors comes as a surprise, considering Texas lawmakers have made regulating social media a priority this legislative session.

Gov. Greg Abbott has already signed Senate Bill 2420, which restricts children from downloading apps, into law and emphasized his support of protecting children’s online presence.

“Safety and online privacy for Texas children remains a priority for Governor Abbott, which is why he signed SB 2420 into law. Texas will empower parents to have more control over the online content their children can access,” said Andrew Mahaleris, his press secretary, when asked about Abbott’s support of HB 186.

Under HB 186, any website that allows users to curate and create content is considered a social media website and is cut off from minors. News and sports websites will be safe.

Lawmakers are also considering House Bill 499, by Rep. Mary González, D-Clint, which would require social media platforms to have a warning label about the association between a minor’s social media usage and significant mental health issues.

As of June 2024, 10 states, including Texas, have passed laws restricting children’s access to social media, according to the Age Verification Providers Association.

Studies show that 95% of youth aged 13 to 17 report using social media, with more than a third stating they use social media “almost constantly.”

Two years ago, the American Federation of Teachers and the American Psychological Association, among other national organizations, called out social media platforms for undermining classroom learning, increasing costs for school systems, and being a “root cause” of the nationwide youth mental health crisis.

Several social media platforms and application management companies have noted that the state's measures to protect children are too far-reaching and will have an impact beyond their intended scope.

An Apple spokesperson said that while they share the goal of strengthening kids’ online safety, the current proposals coming out of Texas will require them to retain sensitive, personally identifiable information for every Texan who wants to download an app.

Most social media platforms and online applications ask for age verification before signing up, but Texas is looking for more intensive measures, according to the Age Verification Providers Association, such as requiring a license or outright banning minors until they can prove they are older than 16 or 18.

Congress is considering the Kids Online Safety Act, which does not require app marketplaces to collect and keep sensitive data, such as passports or driver’s licenses, from all users to verify age. Apple supports the federal legislation’s approach over Texas’.

The outright ban on social media for minors has also garnered criticism from many on social media, including prominent conservative accounts such as Ian Miles Cheong, Laura Loomer, and Libs of TikTok, who have denounced the bill for excluding video games from the ban completely and for leaving a loophole open for video applications like YouTube and TikTok due to the bill’s wording.

“Let people parent their children how they see fit. Parents are more than capable of controlling their children's screen time. Stop nanny state legislation. This is what Democrats do, not Republicans,” said Loomer in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

The social media ban, even if passed via another bill, is expected to face challenges in court, as some argue that it violates the First Amendment.

“It’s going too far. It’s sweeping adult speech into it without realizing that by adding an unnecessary hurdle, it affects everyone,” said Kathleen Farley, a First Amendment lawyer for the Washington, D.C.-based Chamber of Progress.

She said that, just like video games, social media, and online applications already have a voluntary ratings system that parents can access before any minor can access a website or application, and anything more stringent is usually considered too broad a restriction for the courts.

“I think all of this shows a need for people to be better educated on the current parental controls that exist in app stores. There are already ratings and ways to prevent children from downloading certain apps,” she said. “The fact that this legislation is being pushed is either that people don’t know about it, or it’s too hard to use.”

Disclosure: Apple and Facebook have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

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