Connecticut legislators heard from members of the public about a bill that outlines restrictions on minors’ access to social media platforms.
Legislators reviewed House Bill 5037, which would require social media companies to prohibit minors' access to platforms without parental consent. The bill is part of an ongoing effort from Connecticut leadership to expand legislation related to young people and technology. Prior to the start of the session, the bill was promoted by Governor Ned Lamont and state Attorney General William Tong.
The General Law Committee held a public hearing on Wednesday, during which supporters and opponents of the bill spoke. Heidi Olson, pediatric sexual assault nurse examiner, spoke in favor of the bill. Olson said she's spoken with children who have experienced bullying, sexual harassment and assault, and mental health issues after being exposed to certain social media content.
"Unfortunately, without better regulation, many 'child-friendly' apps are not child-friendly at all. And it's our responsibility as adults to ensure our kids are safe online," Olson said.
The bill requires social media companies to implement a method to verify whether a user is younger than 18 years old. If the user is identified as a minor, they would need parental consent before they can join a platform. Minors would have a different set of restrictions on the platform, which includes only having private, not public, accounts. The bill also requires platforms to stop sending notifications between certain hours.
In 2024, Tong was one of 42 attorneys general who sent a letter to Congress requesting a surgeon general’s warning on social media platforms. If the bill passes, platforms would be required to display the Surgeon General's warning label.
"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," it reads.
Part of HB 5037 outlines how the warning label is displayed for young users. The bill suggests that the warning label appear each time a young user first logs into the platform and again every three hours that the user is on the platform
In 2025, the House passed a similar bill to protect minors on social media, but it was not called for a vote in the Senate before the regular session adjourned. At the time, critics of the bill argued that it would be difficult from a technical standpoint to determine the identity of users and whether or not they are adults. But Tong said that it is a responsibility that companies must figure out for themselves.
In his written testimony submitted Wednesday, Tong said his support for the bill is the next step of an ongoing effort to protect children online.
“We cannot continue to allow our kids to be taken advantage of by companies whose main purpose is turning a profit. It is incumbent on us to ensure that we protect them so that they can be healthy and the best versions of themselves,” Tong said.
Because the legislation would apply to users in Connecticut, platform owners would need to figure out not only the age of the users but also which are Connecticut residents. But the bill instructs platforms to immediately delete users’ age information after verification. If passed, technology companies would have until January 1st, 2028, when the law goes into effect, to create an age verification system.
One section of the HB 5037 raised questions about consumer data privacy laws. Some opponents of the bill say it conflicts with the attorney general’s own efforts to protect consumer data privacy.
The bill also mandates that companies submit an annual report to the Connecticut Attorney General’s office. The first report is due no later than March 1, 2028. The report would include information on users’ ages, how often they use the platform, and the exact times of day each user is active.
Earlier this month, the office released The Connecticut Data Privacy Act (CTDPA) annual report, which outlines the state's data privacy laws, compliance expectations and enforcement for violations. Tong noted several data breaches and compliance violations in the past year.
Some are concerned that the request to collect this data conflicts with the attorney general's mission to expand data privacy protections for its residents. Tong did not say why his office needs the report or how he proposes protecting that information from potential data breaches or hackers.
In a previous press conference, Tong said his office will also work to update the CTDPA law, further define “sensitive data,” and expand the rights residents have with their personal data. He said one of his office’s priorities will include rights related to minors’ privacy. In the CTDPA report, the office stated it reached out to three popular social media companies to understand how the companies were complying with the CTDPA’s minors’ privacy provisions.
In 2026, the CTDPA expanded its protections to include banning the “processing of minors’ personal data for targeted advertising and sale” and collecting minors’ precise geolocation data unless strictly necessary. The report also highlighted concerns with regard to minors’ data privacy when it came to messaging apps, gaming platforms and Artificial intelligence chatbots.
House Bill 5037 is one of several technology-related bills introduced, including proposed regulations on facial recognition technology, data privacy expansions, and artificial intelligence. The state’s General Assembly has until May 6 to make revisions to the bill and vote before the end of the session.
