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HB 301

Redistricting of the legislature.

2025 Regular Session Introduced by J.D. Williams

The bill restricts under-16 accounts on large algorithmic social platforms, requires parental consent for 14–15 year-olds, terminates under-14 accounts, and enforces data deletion

H Did not Consider for Introduction
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Bill Summary · HB 301

HB 301 — Social Media Protections for Minors Under 16

Status: Regular Message Sent to Senate (introduced in 2025; multiple committee substitutes passed in the House)
Primary sponsor: Rep. Zenger

Purpose

To reduce harms to children under 16 by restricting how commercial social media platforms may allow minors to hold accounts, requiring parental consent for some minors, mandating account termination and data deletion in specified cases, and creating enforcement remedies for violations.

Key provisions

  • Scope — “Social media platform” is defined narrowly to capture large, algorithmic, engagement-driven services that:

    • Allow user-generated content or viewing of others’ content;
    • Have ≥10% of their U.S. daily active users who are under 16 spending on average ≥2 hours/day on days they use the service; and
    • Use algorithms to select content and include one or more listed “addictive features” (infinite scrolling, push notifications, visible interactive metrics, auto-play video, live-streaming).
    • Several services are excluded (simple email/direct messaging, customer support forums, certain news/entertainment feeds, interactive games with parental controls, online shopping/e‑commerce).

  • Minors under 14:

    • Platforms must prohibit persons under 14 from becoming account holders.
    • Platforms must terminate any account held by a user under 14 after 30 days’ notice (subject to a dispute process).
    • Platforms must permanently delete personal information associated with terminated accounts unless retention is legally required.

  • Minors 14–15:

    • Platforms must prohibit account creation unless a parent/guardian provides consent.
    • If a parent/guardian has not provided consent, the platform must terminate the minor’s account (30-day dispute window).
    • Parents/guardians may request termination; platforms must comply within 10 business days.
    • Platforms must delete personal data on termination (unless legal retention required).

  • Age verification:

    • The bill recognizes “standard” and “anonymous” age-verification methods (commercially reasonable methods; anonymous verification via independent third parties is contemplated in later versions).

Enforcement & remedies

  • Enforcement primarily by the North Carolina Department of Justice (DOJ) as an unfair or deceptive trade practice.
  • Civil penalties: up to $50,000 per violation plus attorneys’ fees and costs.
  • For repeated, knowing or reckless patterns, punitive damages may be available.
  • Private cause of action: minors may recover up to $10,000 (plus costs and fees) against a platform that knowingly or recklessly violates the law; such suits must be brought within one year of discovery.
  • The bill treats platforms that permit minors to create accounts as doing business in the State for jurisdictional purposes.

Who is affected

  • Covered platforms meeting the usage and feature thresholds (generally large, algorithmic social networks and apps).
  • Minors under 16 (with distinct rules for <14 and 14–15).
  • Parents and guardians (control and consent rights).
  • North Carolina Department of Justice (enforcement workload).
  • Platforms’ vendors, compliance and age‑verification service providers.

Implementation & timeline

  • Earliest text set an effective date of March 1, 2025 (committee substitutes discuss effective/application timing). Legislative history shows the House passed committee substitutes and sent the bill to the Senate (Regular Message Sent to Senate). Check the most recent chamber actions for current status and any enacted effective date.

Potential impacts and considerations

  • Expected compliance costs for platforms (age verification, account termination/data deletion processes, policy revisions).
  • Public-safety and child-privacy benefits versus technical challenges (accurate age verification, cross-border enforcement, false positives/negatives).
  • Possible constitutional and federal preemption issues (privacy, commerce clause, Section 230/First Amendment challenges may arise).
  • Enforcement burdens on DOJ and potential litigation risk from platforms and private plaintiffs.

For final legal effect, consult the enacted/amended text and current legislative status in the North Carolina General Assembly.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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