| Last Version Text |
<?xml version="1.0" ?>
<ns0:MeasureDoc xmlns:html="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xmlns:ns0="http://lc.ca.gov/legalservices/schemas/caml.1#" xmlns:ns3="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" version="1.0" xsi:schemaLocation="http://lc.ca.gov/legalservices/schemas/caml.1# xca.1.xsd">
<ns0:Description>
<ns0:Id>20250AB__000297AMD</ns0:Id>
<ns0:VersionNum>97</ns0:VersionNum>
<ns0:History>
<ns0:Action>
<ns0:ActionText>INTRODUCED</ns0:ActionText>
<ns0:ActionDate>2024-12-02</ns0:ActionDate>
</ns0:Action>
<ns0:Action>
<ns0:ActionText>AMENDED_ASSEMBLY</ns0:ActionText>
<ns0:ActionDate>2025-03-17</ns0:ActionDate>
</ns0:Action>
<ns0:Action>
<ns0:ActionText>AMENDED_ASSEMBLY</ns0:ActionText>
<ns0:ActionDate>2025-04-03</ns0:ActionDate>
</ns0:Action>
<ns0:Action>
<ns0:ActionText>REVISED</ns0:ActionText>
<ns0:ActionDate>2025-04-08</ns0:ActionDate>
</ns0:Action>
</ns0:History>
<ns0:LegislativeInfo>
<ns0:SessionYear>2025</ns0:SessionYear>
<ns0:SessionNum>0</ns0:SessionNum>
<ns0:MeasureType>AB</ns0:MeasureType>
<ns0:MeasureNum>2</ns0:MeasureNum>
<ns0:MeasureState>AMD</ns0:MeasureState>
</ns0:LegislativeInfo>
<ns0:AuthorText authorType="LEAD_AUTHOR">Introduced by Assembly Members Lowenthal and Patterson</ns0:AuthorText>
<ns0:AuthorText authorType="COAUTHOR_ORIGINATING">(Coauthors: Assembly Members Harabedian, Pellerin, and Rivas)</ns0:AuthorText>
<ns0:Authors>
<ns0:Legislator>
<ns0:Contribution>LEAD_AUTHOR</ns0:Contribution>
<ns0:House>ASSEMBLY</ns0:House>
<ns0:Name>Lowenthal</ns0:Name>
</ns0:Legislator>
<ns0:Legislator>
<ns0:Contribution>LEAD_AUTHOR</ns0:Contribution>
<ns0:House>ASSEMBLY</ns0:House>
<ns0:Name>Patterson</ns0:Name>
</ns0:Legislator>
<ns0:Legislator>
<ns0:Contribution>COAUTHOR</ns0:Contribution>
<ns0:House>ASSEMBLY</ns0:House>
<ns0:Name>Harabedian</ns0:Name>
</ns0:Legislator>
<ns0:Legislator>
<ns0:Contribution>COAUTHOR</ns0:Contribution>
<ns0:House>ASSEMBLY</ns0:House>
<ns0:Name>Pellerin</ns0:Name>
</ns0:Legislator>
<ns0:Legislator>
<ns0:Contribution>COAUTHOR</ns0:Contribution>
<ns0:House>ASSEMBLY</ns0:House>
<ns0:Name>Rivas</ns0:Name>
</ns0:Legislator>
</ns0:Authors>
<ns0:Title>An act to add Section 1714.02 to the Civil Code, relating to social media platforms.</ns0:Title>
<ns0:RelatingClause>social media platforms</ns0:RelatingClause>
<ns0:GeneralSubject>
<ns0:Subject>Injuries to children: civil penalties.</ns0:Subject>
</ns0:GeneralSubject>
<ns0:DigestText>
<html:p>Existing law provides that everyone is responsible not only for the result of their willful acts but also for an injury occasioned to another by their want of ordinary care or skill in the management of their property or person.</html:p>
<html:p>This bill would make a social media platform, as defined, liable for specified damages if the social media platform fails to exercise ordinary care or skill
by causing injury to a
child.</html:p>
</ns0:DigestText>
<ns0:DigestKey>
<ns0:VoteRequired>MAJORITY</ns0:VoteRequired>
<ns0:Appropriation>NO</ns0:Appropriation>
<ns0:FiscalCommittee>NO</ns0:FiscalCommittee>
<ns0:LocalProgram>NO</ns0:LocalProgram>
</ns0:DigestKey>
<ns0:MeasureIndicators>
<ns0:ImmediateEffect>NO</ns0:ImmediateEffect>
<ns0:ImmediateEffectFlags>
<ns0:Urgency>NO</ns0:Urgency>
<ns0:TaxLevy>NO</ns0:TaxLevy>
<ns0:Election>NO</ns0:Election>
<ns0:UsualCurrentExpenses>NO</ns0:UsualCurrentExpenses>
<ns0:BudgetBill>NO</ns0:BudgetBill>
<ns0:Prop25TrailerBill>NO</ns0:Prop25TrailerBill>
</ns0:ImmediateEffectFlags>
</ns0:MeasureIndicators>
</ns0:Description>
<ns0:Bill id="bill">
<ns0:Preamble>The people of the State of California do enact as follows:</ns0:Preamble>
<ns0:BillSection id="id_AE46C754-3B47-4FC7-B425-EE4A0E10EC9C">
<ns0:Num>SECTION 1.</ns0:Num>
<ns0:Content>
<html:p>The Legislature finds and declares the following:</html:p>
<html:p>
(a)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Subdivision (a) of Section 1714 of the Civil Code already makes every person and corporation, including social media platforms, financially responsible for an injury occasioned to another by their want of ordinary care or skill in the management of their property or person.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(b)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Children are uniquely vulnerable on social media platforms.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(c)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The biggest social media platforms invent and deploy features they know injure large numbers of children, including contributing to child deaths.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(d)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The costs of these injuries are unfairly being paid by parents, schools, and taxpayers, not the platforms.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(e)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
This act is necessary to ensure that the social media platforms that are knowingly causing the most severe injuries to the largest number of children receive heightened damages to prevent injury from occurring to children in the first place.
</html:p>
</ns0:Content>
</ns0:BillSection>
<ns0:BillSection id="id_BD10B00E-5D41-4E25-9D99-CC6FF99588DB">
<ns0:Num>SEC. 2.</ns0:Num>
<ns0:ActionLine action="IS_ADDED" ns3:href="urn:caml:codes:CIV:caml#xpointer(%2Fcaml%3ALawDoc%2Fcaml%3ACode%2F%2Fcaml%3ALawSection%5Bcaml%3ANum%3D'1714.02'%5D)" ns3:label="fractionType: LAW_SECTION" ns3:type="locator">
Section 1714.02 is added to the
<ns0:DocName>Civil Code</ns0:DocName>
,
<ns0:Positioning>immediately following Section 1714.01</ns0:Positioning>
, to read:
</ns0:ActionLine>
<ns0:Fragment>
<ns0:LawSection id="id_53068DEB-54F7-438F-8980-1C87F6A56B45">
<ns0:Num>1714.02.</ns0:Num>
<ns0:LawSectionVersion id="id_96C9F5EE-6D9D-415F-9362-AF92FC82655D">
<ns0:Content>
<html:p>
(a)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
A social media platform that violates subdivision (a) of Section 1714 by causing injury to a child shall be liable for statutory damages for the larger of the following:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(1)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Five thousand dollars ($5,000) per violation up to a maximum, per child, of one million
dollars ($1,000,000).
</html:p>
<html:p>
(2)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Three times the amount of the child’s actual damages.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(b)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Any waiver of this section shall be void and unenforceable as contrary to public policy.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(c)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
For the purpose of this section:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(1)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
“Child” means a minor under 18 years of age.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(2)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
“Social media platform” means a social media platform, as defined in Section 22675 of the Business and Professions Code, that generates more than one hundred million dollars ($100,000,000) per year in gross revenues.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(d)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The duties, remedies, and obligations imposed by this section are cumulative to the duties, remedies, or obligations imposed under other law and shall not be construed to relieve a social media platform from any duties, remedies, or obligations imposed under any other law.
</html:p>
</ns0:Content>
</ns0:LawSectionVersion>
</ns0:LawSection>
</ns0:Fragment>
</ns0:BillSection>
<ns0:BillSection id="id_400F28CD-4CA4-49D3-B76B-DEEDE9EF07F1">
<ns0:Num>SEC. 3.</ns0:Num>
<ns0:Content>
<html:p>The provisions of this act are severable. If any provision of this act or its application is held invalid, that invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application.</html:p>
</ns0:Content>
</ns0:BillSection>
<ns0:BillSection id="id_3D9B6C5F-145B-4B27-8139-6453EE0EC3E0">
<ns0:Num>SEC. 4.</ns0:Num>
<ns0:Content>
<html:p>The provisions of this act shall only apply prospectively. This act does not apply to any legal case that was pending on or before January 1, 2026.</html:p>
</ns0:Content>
</ns0:BillSection>
<ns0:Correction>
REVISIONS:</ns0:Correction>
<ns0:Correction>
Heading—Line 3.</ns0:Correction>
</ns0:Bill>
</ns0:MeasureDoc>
|