California Attorney General Rob Bonta has launched the preliminary phase of rulemaking for Senate Bill 976, the “Protecting Our Kids from Social Media Addiction Act.”
The legislation mandates that social media companies use “age assurance” systems to determine whether a California user is an adult or a minor.
The Attorney General has until January 1, 2027, to complete and adopt the final regulations.
The California Department of Justice (DOJ) will host a public meeting on November 5, 2025, to gather feedback from residents, experts, and organizations about how these rules should be structured.
The DOJ is seeking public comment on the potential effects of the proposed regulations.
Citizens can send their comments in written form to sb976@doj.ca.gov. Note that any information provided is subject to the Public Records Act.
SB 976 was introduced to limit the impact of addictive online design features on minors. It requires the Attorney General to create standards for age assurance and parental consent that align with the Act’s stated purpose of child protection.
However, privacy advocates have raised alarms that the “age assurance” requirement could erode online anonymity, forcing individuals to hand over sensitive identification data to access social platforms.
Such systems could expose Californians to new risks of data collection, profiling, and potential misuse of personal information.
Hellbound and Down 