HB276INTRODUCED
Page 0
HB276
ZAL9KRW-1
By Representative Robbins
RFD: Children and Senior Advocacy
First Read: 13-Feb-25
1
2
3
4
5 ZAL9KRW-1 02/05/2025 THR (L)THR 2024-2462
Page 1
First Read: 13-Feb-25
SYNOPSIS:
This bill would require social media platforms
to display notifications when minor account holders
under 18 years of age use the platform in certain
circumstances.
This bill would require social media platforms
to prohibit certain actions regarding accounts owned by
minors under 18 years of age.
This bill would require social media platforms
to respond in a timely manner to inquiries from the
Attorney General.
This bill would require social media platforms
to use a commercially reasonable age verification
process.
This bill would require social media platforms
to provide tools and settings for parents, guardians,
and minors to support minors with accounts on the
platform.
This bill would require social media platforms
to remove certain content in certain circumstances.
This bill would require social media platforms
to cooperate with law enforcement agencies.
This bill would provide that a knowing or
reckless violation by a social media platform of this
act is a deceptive trade practice and would provide for
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28 HB276 INTRODUCED
Page 2
act is a deceptive trade practice and would provide for
civil penalties.
This bill would also require the State
Department of Education to develop guidelines and a
resource bank related to the mental and physical health
impacts of social media use by minors.
A BILL
TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
Relating to social media; to require social media
platforms to terminate certain accounts; to require social
media platforms to display notifications in certain
circumstances; to require social media platforms to prohibit
certain actions; to require social media platforms to respond
to inquiries from the Attorney General; to require social
media platforms to use an age verification process; to require
social media platforms to provide certain account tools and
settings; to require social media platforms to remove certain
content; to require social media platforms to cooperate with
law enforcement; and to require the State Department of
Education to take certain actions related to the mental and
physical health impacts of social media use by minors.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
Section 1. For the purposes of this act, the following
terms have the following meanings:
(1) ACCOUNT HOLDER. A resident who opens, creates, or
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56 HB276 INTRODUCED
Page 3
(1) ACCOUNT HOLDER. A resident who opens, creates, or
operates a profile on a social media platform or is identified
by a social media platform by a unique identifier while using
or accessing a social media platform when the social media
platform knows or has reason to believe that the resident is
located in this state.
(2) DAILY ACTIVE USERS. The number of unique users in
the United States who used a social media platform on at least
80 percent of the previous 365 days or, if the social media
platform has not existed for 365 days, the number of unique
users in the United States who used the social media platform
on at least 80 percent of the last 30 days.
(3) ENGAGEMENT FEATURE. Any of the following:
a. Infinite scrolling.
b. Push notifications or alerts sent by a social media
platform to inform a user about specific activities or events
related to the user's account.
c. Display of personal interactive metrics that
indicate the number of times other users have clicked a button
to indicate their reaction to content or have shared or
reposted the user's content.
d. Video that begins to play without the user first
clicking on the video or on a play button for the video.
(4) EPHEMERAL CONTENT. Content that is temporarily made
available to users of a social media platform and that
includes features, notifications, or visual design cues
indicating the content will soon disappear.
(5) INFINITE SCROLLING. Either of the following:
a. Content that loads as the user scrolls down the page
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84 HB276 INTRODUCED
Page 4
a. Content that loads as the user scrolls down the page
without the need to open a separate page.
b. The use of pages with no visible or apparent end or
page breaks.
(6) OBSCENE MATTER. Any visual medium depicting acts of
sexually explicit conduct, as defined in Section 13A-12-190,
Code of Alabama 1975.
(7) RESIDENT. An individual who resides in this state
for at least six months out of every year.
(8) SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM or PLATFORM. An online forum,
website, or application that satisfies each of the following
criteria:
a. Allows users to upload content or view the content
or activity of other users.
b. Employs algorithms that analyze user data or
information on users to select content for users.
c. Employs any engagement features.
d. Of the platform's daily active users under 16 years
of age, at least 10 percent average more than two hours per
day using the website over the last 365 days, or over the last
30 days if the platform has not existed for 365 days.
Section 2. A social media platform shall do all of the
following:
(1) Allow any account holder to request to terminate an
account. The termination must be effective within five
business days after the request.
(2) Allow the confirmed parent or guardian of an
account holder under 16 years of age to request the
termination of the account holder's account. The termination
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112 HB276 INTRODUCED
Page 5
termination of the account holder's account. The termination
must be effective within 45 business days after the request.
(3) Permanently delete all personal information held by
the social media platform relating to any account terminated
pursuant to this section, unless otherwise required by law.
Section 3. On or after January 1, 2027, a social media
platform, by default, shall display a pop-up or full screen
notification to an account holder who is under 18 years of age
when the account holder does either of the following:
(1) Has spent one cumulative hour on the social media
platform during a 24-hour period.
(2) Uses the social media platform between the hours of
10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.
Section 4. A social media platform shall prohibit an
account owned by an individual under 18 years of age from all
of the following:
(1) Receiving direct messages from any account holder
18 years of age or older unless the minor account holder is
already connected to the adult account holder on the platform.
(2) Collecting or using personal information from the
posts, content, messages, texts, or usage activities of the
account other than information beyond what is adequate,
relevant, and reasonably necessary in relation to the purposes
for which such information is collected, as disclosed.
(3) Displaying any advertising in the account based on
the account holder's personal information, except age or
location.
Section 5. (a) A social media platform shall respond in
a timely manner and in a usable format to inquiries from the
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140 HB276 INTRODUCED
Page 6
a timely manner and in a usable format to inquiries from the
Attorney General regarding all of the following:
(1) The current version of the published policies of
the platform.
(2) Any changes to the published policies since the
previous report.
(3) Whether the current version of the published
policies contains a definition or provision relating to any of
the following categories of content and, if so, the respective
definitions or descriptions:
a. Illicit substances.
b. Sex trafficking.
c. Possession, display, exchange, distribution, sale,
or creation of, or the inducement to create, obscene matter.
(4) Content moderation practices used by the platform
including, but not limited to, all of the following:
a. Content practices intended to address any of the
categories of content listed in subdivision (3).
b. How the platform responds to user reports of content
that violates its published policies.
c. How the platform removes individual pieces of
content, users, or groups that violate the published policies
or takes other action against a user or group of users that
violates the published policies.
d. The languages in which the platform makes published
policies available.
(5) A description of the platform's age verification
practices, including the types of data used for age
verification.
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168 HB276 INTRODUCED
Page 7
verification.
(6) Data including all of the following:
a. The number of times in the preceding calendar year
that the platform responded to requests using the legal
process from law enforcement agencies in this state pursuant
to a violation of state or federal law, and the nature of any
violation.
b. The number of times that law enforcement agencies in
this state requested information, as well as the number of
requests that went unanswered and the reason why the requests
went unanswered.
(b) The Attorney General shall make public all
information collected pursuant to this section.
(c) Nothing in this section shall compel a platform to
publicly report information in violation of trade secret
protections or where doing so could damage the integrity or
security of the platform.
Section 6. (a) A social media platform shall use a
commercially reasonable process to verify the age of each user
of the platform.
(b) A platform shall allow each user to select an
option to apply to the protections described in Sections 7 and
8.
(c) With regard to any information concerning a user
obtained by a platform or its agent in order to comply with
the requirements of this section, a platform or its agent
shall do both of the following:
(1) Retain the information only for the purpose of
compliance with this section.
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196 HB276 INTRODUCED
Page 8
compliance with this section.
(2) Securely dispose of the information after age
verification is complete.
(d) Any agent of a platform that processes age
verification information as required by this section shall
have its principal place of business in the United States.
Section 7. (a) A social media platform shall provide
readily accessible and easy-to-use tools and settings for
parents and guardians to support a minor account holder with
respect to the minor's use of the platform. The tools and
settings shall include the ability to do all of the following:
(1) View and manage privacy and account settings.
(2) Restrict purchases and financial transactions.
(3) View metrics of total time spent on the platform.
(4) Restrict time spent on the platform, including both
maximum daily usage limits and limits during certain hours.
(5) Limit and opt out of all of the following:
a. Infinite scrolling features, while still allowing
display of content in a chronological format.
b. Notification and alert features.
c. Reward features of any kind, including rewards a
platform gives to users for time spent on the platform.
d. Appearance-altering filters.
e. Automatic playing of media.
f. Geolocation features.
(6) Limit types or categories of recommendations from
personal recommendation systems and ephemeral content feeds.
(7) View information regarding interactions between the
minor's account and other accounts, including a list of
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224 HB276 INTRODUCED
Page 9
minor's account and other accounts, including a list of
connected accounts and a list of accounts with which the minor
account has exchanged private messages.
(8) Easily report predatory activity and obscene matter
to the platform.
(9) Delete the minor's account and any personal data
collected from or shared by the minor on the platform.
(b) A social media platform shall provide clear and
conspicuous notice to a user that the platform knows or
reasonably should know is a minor when tools described in this
section are in effect and what settings or controls have been
applied.
Section 8. (a) A social media platform shall provide an
individual whom the platform knows or reasonably should know
is a minor with readily accessible and easy-to-use safeguards
that include the ability to do all of the following:
(1) Limit the amount of time the minor spends on the
platform.
(2) Limit the ability of other individuals to
communicate with the minor.
(3) Prevent other users from viewing the minor's
personal data collected by or shared on the platform.
(4) Limit and opt out of all of the following:
a. Private messaging and private content features.
b. Notification and alter features.
c. Reward features of any kind, including rewards a
platform gives to users for time spent on the platform.
d. Appearance-altering features.
e. Automatic playing of media.
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252 HB276 INTRODUCED
Page 10
e. Automatic playing of media.
f. Geolocation features.
(5) Limit types or categories of recommendations from
personal recommendation systems and ephemeral content feeds.
(6) Restrict the sharing of the geolocation of the
minor to other users on the platform and provide notice of the
tracking of the minor's geolocation.
(7) Delete the minor's account and any personal data
collected from or shared by the minor on the platform.
(b) A social media platform shall ensure that, in the
case of a user the platform knows or reasonably should know is
a minor, the default setting for any safeguard described in
this section is the option that provides the most protective
level of control over privacy and safety for that user.
(c) A social media platform shall provide an individual
whom the platform knows or reasonably should know is a minor
with clear and conspicuous warnings when any of the following
occur:
(1) Content shared by the minor on the platform may
contain geolocation information.
(2) The minor's data may be tracked or used for the
purpose of algorithmic profiling, recommending content, or
targeting advertising.
(3) The minor's data may be sold to the platform's
advertising clients.
(4) The minor's account profile is recommended or
displayed to adult users.
(5) The minor's account profile is recommended or
displayed to users who are not on the minor's populated list
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280 HB276 INTRODUCED
Page 11
displayed to users who are not on the minor's populated list
of connected users on the platform.
(6) The minor shares or receives private content from
users who are not on the minor's populated list of connected
users on the platform.
Section 9. A social media platform shall take action
against any user determined to have engaged in any violation
of the platform's published policies as detected by any
component of the platform's content moderation systems.
Section 10. Prior to initiating any enforcement action
pursuant to this act, the Attorney General shall issue a
notice of violation to a social media platform alleged to have
violated this act. If the platform fails to cure the violation
within 60 days after receipt of the notice, an action may be
brought.
Section 11. (a) Any knowing or reckless violation of
this act is deemed a deceptive trade practice actionable under
Chapter 19 of Title 8 of the Code of Alabama 1975. If the
Attorney General has reason to believe that a social media
platform is in violation of this act, the Attorney General, as
the enforcing authority, may bring an action against the
social media platform for an unfair or deceptive trade
practice. In addition to other remedies available under
Chapter 19 of Title 8 of the Code of Alabama of 1975, the
Attorney General may collect a civil penalty of up to fifty
thousand dollars ($50,000) per violation, reasonable attorney
fees, and court costs.
(b) If a violation described in subsection (a) is part
of a consistent pattern of knowing or reckless conduct, the
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
293
294
295
296
297
298
299
300
301
302
303
304
305
306
307
308 HB276 INTRODUCED
Page 12
of a consistent pattern of knowing or reckless conduct, the
Attorney General may seek punitive damages against the social
media platform.
Section 12. (a) The State Department of Education may
develop recommended guidelines for the implementation of
curriculum related to the mental and physical health impacts
of social media use by minors.
(b)(1) The State Department of Education shall convene
a stakeholder group to identify scholarly articles, programs,
and resources pertaining to the mental and physical health
impacts of social media use by minors that are evidence-based,
culturally sensitive, and reflective of positive youth
development guidelines for inclusion in a resource bank.
(2) The State Department of Education shall maintain
the resource bank and update the resource bank on an annual
basis.
Section 13. The Attorney General shall adopt rules to
implement this act.
Section 14. An Internet service provider or its
affiliates or subsidiaries, a search engine, or a cloud
service provider does not violate this act solely by providing
access or connections to or from a website or other
information or content on the Internet or a facility, system,
or network not under the provider's control, including
transmission, downloading, intermediate storage, or access
software, to the extent the provider is not responsible for
the creation of the content of the communication which
violates this act.
Section 15. This act shall become effective on January
309
310
311
312
313
314
315
316
317
318
319
320
321
322
323
324
325
326
327
328
329
330
331
332
333
334
335
336 HB276 INTRODUCED
Page 13
Section 15. This act shall become effective on January
1, 2027.337