Gov. Ron DeSantis signs bill banning children under 14 from using social media
- Florida Governor DeSantis signed a bill Monday that would prevent children 13 and under from having social media accounts
- Require 14 and 15 year olds to obtain parental consent to have accounts
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill Monday that would ban children under the age of 14 from having social media accounts. He claims this would give parents more options to ‘protect’ their children.
The law would allow teens ages 14 and 15 to manage their own social media accounts, as long as they have parental permission. Once they turned 16, Florida residents could freely own and use social media under the new law.
Nationwide, this law could be one of the strictest bans on social media use for minors.
Previously, DeSantis vetoed a version of the bill that would ban anyone under the age of 16 from social media platforms, regardless of parental consent. He then worked out a compromise with Florida House Speaker Paul Renner to change the age limits.
“Social media harms children in a variety of ways,” DeSantis said as he signed the bill. ‘HB 3 gives parents a greater ability to protect their children.’
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill Monday that would prevent children 13 and younger from having social media accounts and require 14- and 15-year-olds to obtain their parents’ permission to have such accounts
The crackdown comes as Congress is also pushing a bill that would essentially ban TikTok from U.S. app stores if it is not sold by its Chinese parent company.
Lawmakers want TikTok divested from the Asian country as a way to ensure U.S. data isn’t compromised by the Chinese Communist Party through the widely popular video-sharing social media platform.
Other states have considered laws similar to the one DeSantis signed Monday.
A federal judge in Arkansas in August blocked enforcement of a law requiring parental consent for minors to create new social media accounts.
Governor DeSantis has for years promoted his policies in Florida, claiming that his state leads the nation in empowering parents and protecting children.
This includes his landmark Parental Rights in Education Act, which gives guardians greater transparency and input into their children’s public education and specifically regarding sexual health and gender identity teaching.
Many argue that his policies are more harmful to at-risk youth and those who identify as LGBTQ, and have accused the governor of banning books that cover certain sensitive materials.
The latest law would come into effect on January 1, 2025 and is intended as a way to protect children online from harmful people and materials.
“The Internet has become a dark alley for our children where predators prey on them and dangerous social media leads to increased depression, self-harm and even suicide,” said Chairman Renner.
“Thanks to Governor DeSantis’ signature, Florida is leading the way in protecting children online as states across the country fight to address these dangers.”
In addition to banning under 14s from having their own social media accounts and under 16s from doing so without parental consent, HB 3 also requires pornographic websites to use age verification to prevent minors from accessing access such content.