Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday signed a bill that would ban children under 14 from accessing social media platforms and require 14- and 15-year-olds to obtain parental consent. This measure, according to supporters, will protect them from online mental health risks. according to Reuters.

The measure requires social media platforms to close the accounts of under-14s and under-16s who do not have parental consent. It requires them to use a third-party verification system to verify minors.

In February, the Republican-led state legislature passed a bill that completely bans children under 16 from using social media. DeSantis, a Republican, vetoed the bill earlier this month, saying it would limit parents’ rights.

A modified version allows parents to give consent for older children to have social media accounts. It will enter into force on January 1, 2025.

“Social media harms children in many ways,” DeSantis said. He said the legislation “gives parents more power to protect their children.”

Supporters said the legislation would stop the harmful effects of social media on the well-being of children who abuse such platforms and can suffer from anxiety, depression and other mental illnesses as a result.

The target protests

Critics say the bill violates the First Amendment’s free speech provisions and that parents, not the government, should make decisions about their children’s online presence of any age.

Meta META.O, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, opposed the legislation, saying it would limit parental decision-making and raise data privacy concerns because of the personal information users must provide for age-appropriate verification.

Meta said it supports federal legislation requiring online app stores to provide parental permission for children to download.

The bill does not name any specific social media platforms, but indicates that social media sites that promote “endless scrolling,” display reaction metrics such as likes, contain autoplay videos and live streams are targeted.

This will exclude sites and applications whose primary function is email, messaging or texting between a specific sender and a specific recipient.

The measure requires social media companies to permanently delete personal information collected from closed accounts and allows parents to file civil lawsuits against those who fail to do so.

In March 2023, Utah became the first US state to pass laws regulating children’s access to social media, followed by other states including Arkansas, Louisiana, Ohio and Texas, according to a legislative analysis prepared for the Florida bill. The review notes that many other states are considering similar rules.