Social media: warning labels.

Assembly Members Bauer-Kahan and Wicks steer a measure that would create the Social Media Warning Law, adding a new chapter to the Health and Safety Code and requiring daily black box warnings on covered platforms when used by younger users. The operative date is January 1, 2027, and the measure explicitly prohibits a private right of action under this chapter or any other law. It defines the set of covered platforms by tying them to the existing concept of addictive internet-based services or applications, while excluding certain core functions such as the sale of goods, cloud storage, email, private direct messaging, internal organizational communications, and internal collaboration tools not offered to the general public.

The bill requires a distinct warning regime that activates each calendar day a user engages with a covered platform. An initial warning must appear when a user first accesses the platform, remaining visible for at least 10 seconds and occupying at least a quarter of the screen, unless the user dismisses it with a clearly identifiable close control. If the user accumulates three hours of activity on that day, the warning must reappear for at least 30 seconds, cannot be bypassed, and must occupy at least 75 percent of the screen; the user age must be reasonably determined as not over 17 to trigger these requirements. After the initial three hours, the warning must appear at least once every hour of cumulative use. The warning text is fixed and reads: “The Surgeon General has warned that while social media may have benefits for some young users, social media is associated with significant mental health harms and has not been proven safe for young users.” The provisions affirm that displaying or dismissing the notice does not waive or limit other legal claims, and the chapter is severable.

Implementation details and policy context are set against a backdrop of uncertainty regarding enforcement. The measure does not specify penalties, an enforcement agency, or a dedicated enforcement mechanism, and it provides no explicit appropriations. It relies on up-to-date age-determination or age-verification considerations and poses questions about how “calendar day” and “cumulative active use” will be measured across devices and platforms. While the bill does not repeal or modify existing social media safeguards, it adds a separate, time-based disclosure framework aimed at informing users and families about potential mental health risks, without creating a private litigation pathway. The lead time before the operative date invites platforms to plan for age-detection, user-interface overlays, and scheduling of recurring warnings, all within a broader public health framing that cites Surgeon General advisories and ongoing youth mental health concerns.