Sponsors (2)
The bill prioritizes protecting minors' privacy and safety by removing under‑16 accounts and requiring deletion and limited data access, but does so at the cost of compliance burdens for platforms, potential loss of benign online access for teens, and reduced flexibility for state and local policy choices.
Children under 16 will have accounts removed from covered platforms, reducing their exposure to online harms and targeted content.
Platforms must delete personal data of terminated minors immediately, lowering ongoing privacy and profiling risks for those children.
Parents and minors can obtain a copy of the minor's data for up to 90 days after termination, improving data access and some control over removed content.
Platforms will incur compliance costs to identify minors, delete data, and build portability features, which may be passed on to consumers or reduce services.
Some teens (and parents) may lose access to benign services, social connections, or content when accounts are terminated, harming social well‑being and access to support.
The bill relies on platforms' knowledge standards and a 'willful disregard' definition, which could produce inconsistent identification, wrongful removals, or failures to remove.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Prohibits platforms from allowing users known to be under 16 to have accounts, requires identifying and deleting such accounts on a set timeline, deletes minors' data, and gives the FTC enforcement power.
Prohibits covered social media platforms from allowing users the platform knows are under 16 to create or keep accounts. Platforms must find and remove existing minor accounts on a set timeline, delete the minor's personal data immediately upon termination, and provide a short portable-data window if technically feasible. The Federal Trade Commission enforces the rule as an unfair or deceptive act, and states may sue in court under parens patriae with notice to the FTC; the law preempts state or local laws on the same subject. The requirements take effect one year after enactment.
Introduced December 5, 2025 by Erin Houchin · Last progress December 5, 2025