NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A8101
SPONSOR: Cunningham TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the general business law, in relation to requiring
social media networks to verify the age of account holders
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To require that social media companies verify that their users are of
appropriate age within the first thirty days of account opening.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 begins with definitions, then requires that social media
companies must verify the age of existing or new social media account
holders within 30 calendar days. The social media companies should use a
third party vendor for age verification, where the user can submit
documentation of their age. If a user fails to provide the details in
30 days, their account will be suspended until their age is verified.
Furthermore, the Consumer Protection Division must establish processes
for maintaining compliance with this act, including acceptable forms of
verification and protecting personal data.
Section 2 provides a severability clause.
Section 3 states that this act will take effect 60 days after it becomes
law.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ORIGINAL AND AMENDED VERSION (IF APPLICABLE):
N/A
JUSTIFICATION:
The minimum age to use most social media networks is 13. Nevertheless,
according to research from nonprofit organization Thorn, 40-45% of chil-
dren under 13 already use Facebook and Instagram. Young children are
susceptible to cyberbullying, sexual abuse, and app addiction, among
other risks of social media use. Social media companies should be doing
a better job of verifying that their users are actually the age that
they say they are. Using third party verification, users can submit
documentation of their age, such as their photo ID with birthdate. This
verification will be required within the first 30 days, and processes
will be established for protecting users' data.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act will take effect 60 days after it shall have become a law.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
8101
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
October 13, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. CUNNINGHAM -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Consumer Affairs and Protection
AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to requiring
social media networks to verify the age of account holders
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new section
2 394-cccc to read as follows:
3 § 394-cccc. 1. For the purposes of this section, the following terms
4 shall have the following meanings:
5 (a) "Account holder" shall mean a person who has, or opens, an account
6 or profile to use a social media network's platform.
7 (b) "Division" shall mean the consumer protection division established
8 pursuant to section ninety-four-a of the executive law.
9 (c) "Social media network" shall have the same meaning as set forth in
10 paragraph (b) of subdivision one of section three hundred ninety-four-
11 ccc of this article.
12 2. A social media network shall verify the age of an existing or new
13 social media account holder:
14 (a) for a new account, within thirty calendar days of the date the
15 account holder opens the account; or
16 (b) for an existing account, if the account holder has not provided
17 age verification, within thirty calendar days of such account holder's
18 first attempt to access such account after the effective date of this
19 section.
20 3. A social media network shall use a third party vendor to complete
21 the age verification required pursuant to subdivision two of this
22 section.
23 4. If an account holder fails to complete the age verification
24 required pursuant to this section within the required time period, the
25 social media network shall deny access to the account:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13308-01-3
A. 8101 2
1 (a) upon the expiration of the time period; and
2 (b) until all age verification requirements are met.
3 5. The division shall:
4 (a) establish processes or means by which a social media network may
5 meet the age verification requirements under this section;
6 (b) establish acceptable forms or methods of identification, which
7 shall include but shall not be limited to a valid identification issued
8 by a government entity;
9 (c) establish processes for providing confirmation of the receipt of
10 any information provided by an account holder seeking to verify their
11 age pursuant to this section;
12 (d) establish requirements for retaining, protecting, and securely
13 disposing of any information obtained by a social media network or its
14 agent as a result of compliance with the age verification requirements
15 under this section;
16 (e) require that any information obtained by a social media company or
17 its agent as a result of compliance with the age verification require-
18 ments under this section shall be retained for the sole purpose of such
19 compliance and shall not be used for any other purpose; and
20 (f) require other applicable state agencies to comply with the age
21 verification requirements under this section.
22 § 2. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivi-
23 sion, section or part of this act shall be adjudged by any court of
24 competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect,
25 impair, or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in
26 its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section
27 or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judg-
28 ment shall have been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of
29 the legislature that this act would have been enacted even if such
30 invalid provisions had not been included herein.
31 § 3. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall
32 have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or
33 repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of
34 this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed
35 on or before such effective date.
