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A bill that would have banned minors from having a social media account has missed a deadline to pass in the Texas Senate.

House Bill 186, filed by Rep. Jared Patterson, R-Frisco, sailed through the House 116-25 in May, but never received a vote in the Senate several days after a slew of teenagers spoke against it during a Senate committee hearing. The contents of the bill could still be attached to another as an amendment or as part of a budget stipulation, but it is unlikely this late into the legislative session, which ends Monday.

The proposal, the most far-reaching of the bills filed to address online dangers this session, would prohibit minors from creating accounts on social media sites, such as Twitter, TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat and more, and require users to verify their ages. Companies would have to comply with the ban by April 2026.

The bill would also allow parents to request the deletion of their child’s existing social media account, and a company must comply within 10 days.

The potential failure of the social media ban for minors comes as a surprise, considering Texas lawmakers have made regulating social media a priority this legislative session.

Gov. Greg Abbott has already signed Senate Bill 2420, which restricts children from downloading apps, into law and emphasized his support of protecting children’s online presence.

“Safety and online privacy for Texas children remains a priority for Governor Abbott, which is why he signed SB 2420 into law. Texas will empower parents to have more control over the online content their children can access,” said Andrew Mahaleris, his press secretary, when asked about Abbott’s support of HB 186.

Under HB 186, any website that allows users to curate and create content is considered a social media website and is cut off from minors. News and sports websites will be safe.

Lawmakers are also considering House Bill 499, by Rep. Mary González, D-Clint, which would require social media platforms to have a warning label about the association between a minor’s social media usage and significant mental health issues.

As of June 2024, 10 states, including Texas, have passed laws restricting children’s access to social media, according to the Age Verification Providers Association.

Studies show that 95% of youth aged 13 to 17 report using social media, with more than a third stating they use social media “almost constantly.”

Two years ago, the American Federation of Teachers and the American Psychological Association, among other national organizations, called out social media platforms for undermining classroom learning, increasing costs for school systems, and being a “root cause” of the nationwide youth mental health crisis.

Several social media platforms and application management companies have noted that the state’s measures to protect children are too far-reaching and will have an impact beyond their intended scope.

An Apple spokesperson said that while they share the goal of strengthening kids’ online safety, the current proposals coming out of Texas will require them to retain sensitive, personally identifiable information for every Texan who wants to download an app.

Most social media platforms and online applications ask for age verification before signing up, but Texas is looking for more intensive measures, according to the Age Verification Providers Association, such as requiring a license or outright banning minors until they can prove they are older than 16 or 18.

Congress is considering the Kids Online Safety Act, which does not require app marketplaces to collect and keep sensitive data, such as passports or driver’s licenses, from all users to verify age. Apple supports the federal legislation’s approach over Texas’.

The outright ban on social media for minors has also garnered criticism from many on social media, including prominent conservative accounts such as Ian Miles Cheong, Laura Loomer, and Libs of TikTok, who have denounced the bill for excluding video games from the ban completely and for leaving a loophole open for video applications like YouTube and TikTok due to the bill’s wording.

“Let people parent their children how they see fit. Parents are more than capable of controlling their children’s screen time. Stop nanny state legislation. This is what Democrats do, not Republicans,” said Loomer in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

The social media ban, even if passed via another bill, is expected to face challenges in court, as some argue that it violates the First Amendment.

“It’s going too far. It’s sweeping adult speech into it without realizing that by adding an unnecessary hurdle, it affects everyone,” said Kathleen Farley, a First Amendment lawyer for the Washington, D.C.-based Chamber of Progress.

She said that, just like video games, social media, and online applications already have a voluntary ratings system that parents can access before any minor can access a website or application, and anything more stringent is usually considered too broad a restriction for the courts.

“I think all of this shows a need for people to be better educated on the current parental controls that exist in app stores. There are already ratings and ways to prevent children from downloading certain apps,” she said. “The fact that this legislation is being pushed is either that people don’t know about it, or it’s too hard to use.”

Disclosure: Apple and Facebook have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

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Apple has criticized a Texas bill mandating age verification for app store users, insisting that “better proposals” exist to protect children online.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed the bill into law on Tuesday, requiring Apple and Google to verify the ages of app store users and obtain parental consent for minors to download apps or make in-app purchases.

Why It Matters

Over 80 percent of Americans support parental consent for minors who want to create a social media account, according to a 2023 Pew Research poll, and more than 70 percent back age verification before use of social media.

In June 2024, Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy, who had regularly cautioned that excessive social media use among adolescents was linked to a higher risk of anxiety, depression, and body image issues, urged Congress to mandate warning labels on such platforms, alerting users to the potential mental health risks associated with them.

What To Know

Apple and Google, which own the two largest app stores in the U.S, had opposed the bill before it was signed, arguing that the law would require widespread data collection, even from Texans downloading non-sensitive apps that concern the weather or sports scores.

“If enacted, app marketplaces will be required to collect and keep sensitive personal identifying information for every Texan who wants to download an app, even if it’s an app that simply provides weather updates or sports scores,” Apple said in an official statement, according to Reuters.

Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, had argued that implementing age restrictions should occur at the app store level instead of in each app.

Apple and Alphabet, Google’s parent company, have recommended alternative solutions, such as providing age-range data only to apps that pose risks, rather than to every app accessed by a user.

Texas follows Utah, which passed a similar law earlier this year. At the federal level, the proposed Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) advanced in the U.S. Senate but has stalled in the House.

Florida has also taken action against large tech companies over children accessing their sites, with the state suing Snapchat for failing to prevent kids under 13 from accessing harmful content.

What People Are Saying

Apple said in a statement: “If enacted, app marketplaces will be required to collect and keep sensitive personal identifying information for every Texan who wants to download an app, even if it’s an app that simply provides weather updates or sports scores.”

In 2024, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said during a U.S. Senate hearing that parents should not “have to upload an ID or proof they are a parent in every single app that their children use. The easier place to do this is in the app stores themselves.”

Casey Stefanski, Executive Director, Digital Childhood Alliance, said: “The problem is that self-regulation in the digital marketplace has failed, where app stores have just prioritized the profit over safety and rights of children and families.”

What Happens Next

The Texas law will take effect on January 1, 2026. Another pending Texas bill would prohibit social media usage by anyone under 18, though it has not yet passed the state legislature.

Texas is poised to pass a groundbreaking law requiring app store operators, including tech giants Apple and Google, to verify the ages of users and secure parental consent for minors, a move that could reshape how young people access digital content. According to Reuters, Senate Bill 2420 has cleared both chambers of the Texas legislature with overwhelming support and now awaits Governor Greg Abbott’s signature.

The legislation mandates that app marketplaces confirm the age of users accessing their platforms. If a user is under 18, the bill would require parental approval before apps can be downloaded or in-app purchases made. As Reuters notes, this makes Texas the latest—and largest—U.S. state to wade into the national debate on smartphone regulation for children, following similar action in Utah earlier this year.

While the bill targets app distribution, it has sparked broader concerns within the tech industry, particularly among the companies tasked with enforcing its provisions. Apple and Google have criticized the proposed law, arguing that it would require the collection of personal data even for innocuous apps, such as those offering weather updates or sports scores. “If enacted, app marketplaces will be required to collect and keep sensitive personal identifying information for every Texan who wants to download an app,” Apple said in a statement.

According to Reuters, both tech companies have floated alternative solutions that would limit data sharing only to applications that explicitly require age-based restrictions. Kareem Ghanem, a senior director at Google, acknowledged a role for legislation but emphasized the need for thoughtful implementation. “It’s just got to be done in the right way,” Ghanem told Reuters, adding that enforcement should also target social media platforms like those owned by Meta, which have faced increased scrutiny for their impact on minors.

Read more: Fortnite Returns to Apple’s U.S. App Store After Five-Year Ban

Indeed, concern over the mental health effects of social media on youth has escalated in recent years. Per Reuters, more than 40 U.S. states have filed lawsuits against Meta, and the U.S. Surgeon General has issued advisories warning about the risks posed to children’s well-being. Globally, countries like Australia and Norway are also contemplating or have enacted legislation banning social media access for younger users.

The Texas bill aligns with a broader public sentiment in favor of stronger child online protections. A 2023 Pew Research Center poll found that 81% of Americans support requiring parental consent for children to open social media accounts, while 71% endorse mandatory age verification for access.

Supporters of the Texas legislation argue that the onus should fall on app stores to manage age restrictions. “The problem is that self-regulation in the digital marketplace has failed, where app stores have just prioritized the profit over safety and rights of children and families,” said Casey Stefanski, executive director of the Digital Childhood Alliance, in a statement to Reuters.

Notably, another proposal still under consideration in the Texas legislature would ban social media usage for anyone under 18, a move that, if passed, could further intensify the national conversation around youth internet access and digital responsibility.

Source: Reuters