Nebraska lawmakers gave first-round approval Tuesday to a proposed law that would require social media companies to change how they design their platforms to shield children from harm.
The proposal, part of Republican Gov. Jim Pillen's larger policy agenda aimed at reducing youths' exposure to online harms, would require social media companies to consider harm prevention and mitigation when designing platform features meant to keep users online — including traits like push notifications and "infinite scroll" that are commonplace on platforms like TikTok and Instagram.
The Legislature voted 38-0 to advance the sweeping proposal to the second round of debate Tuesday after nearly four hours of debate across two days, during which opponents raised questions over the bill's potential unconstitutionality but pledged to work with its sponsor, Sen. Carolyn Bosn of Lincoln, to alleviate concerns.
Introduced by Bosn at Pillen's request, the bill (LB504) would require social media companies to design such features to mitigate a host of risks minors face online, including mental health disorders such as anxiety, depression and eating disorders, as well as compulsive social media use, sexual exploitation, the promotion of drug use and deceptive marketing practices.
The bill would require companies to allow users to opt out of features like infinite scroll and algorithms that make content suggestions, like those deployed by TikTok, Instagram and X, formerly known as Twitter.
It would also require platforms to provide easy-to-use features for users to limit their screentime while limiting data collection to "the minimum amount ... necessary to provide" its services.
The bill would prevent social media companies from facilitating targeted ads to minors and from sending youths push alerts overnight or during school hours. Companies would be required to assume all new users are minors under the bill unless the company "has actual knowledge that the user is not."
Bosn's proposal would also require the companies to provide parents of child users the ability to manage their child's account and privacy settings, review their child's screentime and place limits on their platform usage.
The bill comes after medical professionals have warned in recent years that social media — which has been linked to mental health issues, body-image problems and suicidal thoughts in teens — may not be safe for youths.
The U.S. surgeon general in June called on Congress to require warning labels on social media platforms, citing their effects on young people’s lives, similar to those that appear on cigarette boxes. The last federal law aimed at protecting children online was enacted in 1998.
Nin in 10 U.S. teens between the ages of 13 and 17 report using at least one social media platform, while nearly half say they are online "almost constantly," according to 2024 data from the Pew Research Center.
"I am not here to tell you that all social media for children is bad," Bosn said amid floor debate Monday. "As policymakers, grandparents, parents, we all want to keep children safe. Unfortunately, even people who work in the technology industry that thought they were making educated decisions were led astray by these companies."
Bosn insisted the bill is "not taking away First Amendment rights for children," but opponents suggested otherwise, casting the bill as an encroachment on constitutional rights while lauding its intent.
Lincoln Sen. George Dungan said Bosn is "genuine in her concern about protecting kids" and said he has similar fears over social media's negative impact on youths.
But, he said, the bill "has First Amendment problems," noting that similar legislation passed in other states remains the subject of unresolved legal challenges.
Last month, a federal judge temporarily blocked a less-sweeping California law requiring platforms to ditch the use of algorithmic content suggestions for minors while limiting notifications to those users during school hours and overnight.
"I think it is bad policy for us to pass a bill that is this broad and sweeping in its context, knowing full well that it will immediately be mired in litigation from the second that it is signed by the governor if it reaches that point," Dungan said.
Republican backers of the bill largely disagreed, suggesting lawmakers should pass the bill and leave its fate up to the courts.
"Could this bill be deemed unconstitutional? Possibly," Sen. Mike Jacobson of North Platte said. "But you know what? We aren't going to know unless we pass this bill and move forward with an honest effort."
Bosn pledged to work with opponents on amendments to the bill that don't "simply gut the purpose and the intent of the bill."
And she largely rejected calls from the bill's opponents to find a more narrowed approach to regulating social companies, who Bosn said could have placed guardrails on themselves long before now.
"I submit to you: they aren't going to do it until we make them do it," she said. "Online platforms purposefully design their products to keep kids on screens, to track kids' activity, and then they monetize that data they collect to increase their profits, no matter the cost to your children and to Nebraska children and families."
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