By Koa Davidson
February is here and with that comes the annual convening of the Florida Legislature. The Republicans hold a comfortable position to pass their desired bills with the party holding 28 of the 40 seats in the Florida Senate. Among the bills which the Legislature have already passed, one stands out as the most anticipated.
Bill CS/HB 1- Social Media Use for Minors has stated purpose of protecting the safety of minors online by requiring all social media platforms to ban all minors from using their platforms. On top of this, the platforms must implement a “reasonable” way of verifying a user’s age, effective Jun. 1 of this year.
The bill was passed by the Florida House of Representatives on Jan.24 and since then, the bill has been subject to a polarizing mix of praise and criticism. The notion has garnered bipartisan support with the bill’s writers Tyler Sirois (R), Fiona McFarland (R), and Michele Rayner (D) justifying its implementation by citing social media company’s use of addictive tactics to increase user engagement and fostering an unsafe space for minors to be exposed to malicious actors.
This bill has nothing to do with the safety of social media. It has everything to do with Republicans [sic] dislike of TikTok. Republicans don’t like how TikTok is being used to spread information.”
@kenthiccer
However, the bill has faced criticism, with Mark Zuckerberg threatened to sue the state of Florida if the bill passed claiming it violates the First Amendment. Others criticize the bill for setting up obstacles for minors to learn about the world around, or as put by a popular political TikTok user, who goes by @kenthiccer, “This bill has nothing to do with the safety of social media. It has everything to do with Republicans [sic] dislike of TikTok. Republicans don’t like how TikTok is being used to spread information.”
One of the biggest concerns about the law is how it will be enforced. Many social media platforms already have an age requirement. Skeptics of the law point out that the only way to verify a user’s age, beyond any shadow of a doubt, is for them to have access to user’s birth certificate, putting user privacy at risk. The bill also neglects to offer a proper punishment for companies who violate their guidelines. Surprisingly, Governor Ron DeSantis, an outspoken proponent of monitoring social media companies in the name of protecting minors has expressed concern for the bill. His concerns stem from fear that the bill may hinder the rights of parents to determine how they let their children use the internet. It is expected that DeSantis will not axe the bill entirely, but he will send it back to the Florida Legislature with hopes of them changing it to better meet the governor’s demands.
