North Texas lawmaker looks to ban minors from social media platforms

(Photo by Alicia Windzio/picture alliance via Getty Images)
Texas State Rep. Jared Patterson, R-Frisco, filed a bill looking to restrict minors from social media sites.
Patterson filed House Bill 186 on Tuesday, the first day that lawmakers were allowed to pre-file bills for the 89th Legislative Session.
The bill keeps social media platforms from allowing people younger than 18 years old to use social media, to the extent permitted by federal law.
It also requires age-verification for new users and for there to be a way for parents to request that their child’s account be removed from a social media platform.
Failure to do so would be considered a “deceptive trade practice” and subject to action by the attorney general’s office.
“Heavily addictive social media platforms are destroying the lives of children in Texas. Record increases in anxiety, depression, self-harm and suicide have coincided with the rapid rise in social media use by minors,” wrote Patterson in a statement. “Social media is the most dangerous thing our kids have legal access to in Texas.”
24 October 2024, Lower Saxony, Hanover: ILLUSTRATION – A woman holds a smartphone with various social media apps on the display. Photo: Alicia Windzio/dpa (Photo by Alicia Windzio/picture alliance via Getty Images)
If passed, the act would take effect on September 1, 2025.
The regular session of Texas’ 89th Legislature is scheduled to begin on January 14, 2025 and end on June 2, 2025.
Information in this article comes from House Bill 186 and a statement from State Rep. Jared Patterson.