SACRAMENTO, California — A California bill that attempted to penalize social media companies for harming young users is dead for the year, the author confirmed to POLITICO, arguing amendments had watered down the effort in a victory for Silicon Valley opponents.
In response to mounting concerns that online platforms are exacerbating youth addiction and mental health issues, Democratic Assemblymember Josh Lowenthal sought to threaten massive fines of up to $1 million per child on companies whose products were deemed to cause harm through negligent practices.
The bill — the first in the nation of such scope — earned unusual bipartisan support as its proponents echoed warnings from Gov. Gavin Newsom and First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom about the potential perils of social media.
But changes in the Senate Appropriations Committee weakened the bill by imposing a tougher legal standard of proving companies “knowingly or willfully” failed to exercise their due diligence. Lowenthal told POLITICO on Friday that he was pulling the bill with just over 36 hours left in the year’s legislative session.