HOUSE BILL NO. 3393 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE MAYHEW.
7313H.01I JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT To amend chapter 407, RSMo, by adding thereto one new section relating to social media use by minors, with penalty provisions.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Chapter 407, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto one new section, to be 2 known as section 407.3475, to read as follows: 407.3475. 1. The provisions of this section shall be known and may be referred 2 to as the "Missouri Social Media Safety for Minors Act". 3 2. For purposes of this section, the following terms mean: 4 (1) "Account holder", a natural person who creates, maintains, or accesses an 5 account on a social media platform; 6 (2) "Age verification", a commercially reasonable method of confirming the age 7 of an account applicant consistent with industry standards and privacy protections; 8 (3) "Minor", a person under eighteen years of age; 9 (4) "Social media platform", an online service that allows users to create 10 accounts, create or view user-generated content, interact socially, and use 11 algorithmically curated feeds. The term "social media platform" does not include: 12 (a) Services primarily used for email, direct messaging, or business 13 collaboration; 14 (b) Educational platforms used by schools; and 15 (c) Online video gaming services with integrated chat where social interaction is 16 incidental;
EXPLANATION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is intended to be omitted from the law. Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language. HB 3393 2
17 (5) "Verified parent or guardian", a person with legal custody of a minor, 18 verified through the procedures required under this section. 19 3. No social media platform shall permit a person under sixteen years of age to 20 create or maintain an account separate from a parent or guardian. 21 4. A minor sixteen years of age or older may hold an account only with the 22 verified consent of a parent or legal guardian. 23 5. Social media platforms may allow account creation but shall provide parents 24 or guardians the ability to: 25 (1) Access and review account activity; 26 (2) Request deletion of the minor's account; and 27 (3) Limit messaging features between the minor and unverified adult accounts. 28 6. A social media platform shall implement a secure age-verification process for 29 all Missouri users prior to account creation. 30 7. Age-verification data shall not be retained by the social media platform 31 beyond what is strictly necessary for compliance with the provisions of this section. 32 8. Social media platforms shall use age-verification techniques that: 33 (1) Protect user privacy; and 34 (2) Are independently certifiable as compliant with standards for data 35 minimization and security. 36 9. A social media platform shall immediately terminate any account determined 37 to belong to a person under sixteen years of age. 38 10. A verified parent or guardian may request deletion of a minor's account and 39 the social media platform shall comply within ten business days of such request. Social 40 media platforms shall provide a simple, accessible process for parents or guardians to 41 make such requests. 42 11. A social media platform shall not: 43 (1) Use addictive or manipulative design features specifically targeting minors, 44 including infinite-scroll mechanisms or auto-playing content without time-limit 45 controls; 46 (2) Permit direct messaging from adults to minors unless the adult is a verified 47 contact who is verified by a parent or guardian; or 48 (3) Serve any paid advertising, sponsored content, or commercial promotion to 49 any minor under sixteen years of age who holds an account under this section. 50 12. A violation of this section constitutes an unlawful merchandising practice 51 under chapter 407. The attorney general may enforce the provisions of this section and 52 seek civil penalties of up to fifty thousand dollars per violation, plus injunctive relief and HB 3393 3
53 attorney's fees. A parent or legal guardian of a minor harmed by a violation of this 54 section may bring a civil action for damages. ✔
Statutes affected: