The Florida legislature, backed by Governor Ron DeSantis, has unveiled yet another bill that many critics argue is a direct violation of the 1st Amendment. The legislature’s track record for introducing laws that impinge upon 1st Amendment rights is well-documented; this has led to several costly legal battles, as outlined here, here, and here.
Among the bills introduced by the Florida legislature have been attempts to regulate the editorial freedom of social media platforms. Previous such efforts to legally control social media content were rejected in both the district court and the 11th Circuit, although the Supreme Court is expected to review the case soon.
The latest proposed legislation, the first of the 2024 session and known as HB 1, “Social Media Use for Minors”, aims to ban those under 16 from using social media. The bill also proposes age verification and other regulatory measures, which have previously been deemed as unconstitutional breaches of the 1st Amendment.
In a seeming contradiction of principles, the bill’s proponent, Florida Representative Tyler Sirois, cites a belief in “limited government, individual responsibility, and constitutional liberty”, despite the bill’s directive stance on social media usage for minors.
Sirois maintains that the bill intends to ensure minors’ safety, but a lack of clear evidence linking inherent dangers to kids and social media usage undermines this argument. Recent studies, such as this and this, suggest that social media isn’t as harmful to most kids as one might think. Worse yet, taking it away could potentially lead to more harm than good.
Past court rulings from last year, for instance, already established that bans on social media and age restrictions indeed violate the 1st Amendment. Despite this, and despite a lack of concrete proof showing a significant danger associated with kids’ use of social media, the bill is already making its way through Florida’s legislative process, wasting a great deal of taxpayer funds in the process as it is pushed forward.
For further reading, here are some other law-related stories from Techdirt.