Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) signed legislation Thursday prohibiting minors from using social media without parental consent, in the nation’s most sweeping regulations targeting kids and teens’ internet use as criticism of social media platforms reaches a fever pitch nationally.
The two bills Cox signed into law enact numerous new restrictions, such as requiring social media companies to verify a user’s age and setting a 10:30 p.m. to 6:30 a.m. curfew, during which minors will be locked out of their accounts unless a parent disables the feature.
The new laws also give parents access to their children’s posts and private messages, while platforms are banned from using algorithms that might cause “addiction” to apps in minors.
Republican lawmakers cited a teen mental health crisis, which they blame on increased social media use as a reason for the new regulations—though the impacts of social media remain unclear and are the subject of public health debate.
The new laws will take effect March 1, 2024.