EPIC, Advocates Celebrate As New Jersey Signs Nation-Leading Kids’ Online Safety Bills Into Law

JERSEY CITY, N.J. — EPIC and New Jersey Kids Code Coalition advocates celebrated as Governor Mikie Sherrill signed the landmark New Jersey Kids Code into law alongside bills to create social media mental health warning labels and a new state social media research observatory, applauding the Governor, legislative leaders, and community advocates who championed youth online safety.

“These companies built their products to keep our kids scrolling, whatever the cost — and their lobbyists fought for years to keep anyone from changing it. Today, they lost, and New Jersey chose our kids over their profits. This victory is for my daughter Emily: I fought so her memory would mean other kids are protected — and now, in New Jersey, they will be,” said parent advocate Erin Popolo of South Brunswick, Founder of Emmy’s Champions and Founding Member of Parents Rise!, who lost her daughter Emily to online harms and testified and advocated for the Kids Code throughout the legislative session. 

“By signing this Age-Appropriate Design Code, Governor Sherrill is shifting the burden of mitigating online harms back toward the platforms themselves, ensuring that young people can continue to build safe connections without being exploited,” said Saahir Vazirani, 18, a member of Design It For Us from South Amboy. “For too long, Big Tech has attempted to offload the responsibility for the negative consequences of their products onto children and their families. This landmark legislation acknowledges the failure of that approach, instead mandating platform-wide safeguards that prioritize young people’s safety and privacy by design.”

“Children should not have to sacrifice their privacy to participate in the digital world. The New Jersey Kids Code recognizes that protecting young people online starts with requiring companies to build privacy and safety into their products from the outset, rather than placing the burden on kids and families to protect themselves,” said Alan Butler, President and Executive Director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC). “EPIC applauds Gov. Sherrill for signing the New Jersey Kids Code into law, making clear that young people’s privacy is not something companies can trade away for engagement or profit.” EPIC testified in support of the NJ Kids Code in June.

“The same platforms that sold themselves to my generation as a means of connecting and building community stole our time and robbed us of our attention. By enacting the Kids Code, New Jersey’s Governor and legislators have shown my generation our voices and experiences matter, that Big Tech should not have stronghold over our lives, and that young people should be able to reclaim our time online and build meaningful futures outside of screens,” said Hannah Elder, a member of the Young People’s Alliance, a youth-led organization that champions young people’s autonomy over their time online. Hannah also testified in favor of the Kids Code.

“Well done, New Jersey! Common Sense Media applauds Gov. Sherrill and New Jersey lawmakers for making the New Jersey Kids Code Act the law of the state,” said Danny Weiss, Chief Advocacy Officer at Common Sense Media. “Momentum is building across the states to make kids’ well-being in the digital age a top priority and New Jersey is very much a part of this groundswell. This new law holds social media companies accountable for design choices that drive compulsive use among young people. It includes a strong duty of care, a private right of action, and attorney general enforcement.”

“Today’s signing of these bills is an important milestone in protecting the children of New Jersey from addictive online algorithms and harmful content, said Julie Scelfo, Founder and Executive Director of Mothers Against Media Addiction (MAMA). “With these laws, New Jersey is sending a clear message that our children’s well-being, mental health, and privacy are the priority — not the interests of Big Tech. MAMA parents across the state and nationwide commend Governor Sherrill for her leadership on this critically important issue.” 

“New Jersey’s action is another powerful reminder that protecting children online is not a partisan issue, it is a responsibility,” said Erich Mische, President & CEO of SAVE – Suicide Awareness Voices of Education.“Governor Sherrill and state lawmakers have chosen to put the health, safety and well-being of kids ahead of the business models of some of the most powerful companies in the world. From age-appropriate design standards to mental health warning labels, states across the country are demonstrating that we do not have to accept an online environment that puts children at risk. SAVE is grateful to the parents, young people and advocates whose persistence and courage made this moment possible, and we hope New Jersey’s leadership adds even greater momentum to efforts underway across the country and in Washington.”

“Congratulations to Governor Mikie Sherrill, the New Jersey legislature, and the people of New Jersey for joining the coalition of states paving a safer online future for our children,” said Imran Ahmed, CEO and founder of the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH). “CCDH’s research repeatedly shows that when social media companies are left to regulate themselves, they put profit ahead of children’s safety and design platforms that keep young people hooked on a never-ending stream of harmful content. The New Jersey Kids Code disrupts that business model by requiring companies build safety into their products from the start, clearly warn families about the risks their platforms pose, and uphold a duty of care to protect children from compulsive tech use. New Jersey is turning the core principles of CCDH’s STAR Framework into real protections for children and a model for lawmakers who are waking up to the dangers of Big Tech.”

“Governor Mikie Sherrill promised to take on Big Tech and hold them accountable for designing better products for our kids – today, she delivered. The New Jersey Kids Code is now the strongest state safety-by-design law yet, thanks to hard work by the Governor and the legislators who championed this bill, together with community advocates led by survivor parent Erin Popolo. Their dedication to this fight and bravery in taking on the tech lobby just made the Garden State a safer place to be a kid and to raise a family,” said Marjorie K. Connolly, Communications Director of The Tech Oversight Project.

The New Jersey Kids Code requires online products and services to provide safety-by-design and privacy-by-default protections and uphold a duty of care to prevent compulsive use for known minors. New Jersey joins a growing number of states in embracing the Kids Code’s design-centered legislative approach and strengthening it with dual enforcement of the Act via the Attorney General and a private right of action.

The Kids Code was signed into law as part of a broader youth online safety package alongside companion measure A4014, a bill to establish a state social media research observatory to study how online platforms affect our kids’ mental health, and S3412, which will require the social media research observatory to help develop requirements for social media platforms to display black box mental health warnings alerting users to the documented risks of heavy social media use.

Community advocates including young people, parents, educators, and medical professionals shared powerful testimony in support of the New Jersey Kids Code. An audio recording of June’s Senate committee hearing on the Kids Code (S3413) may be found here, and an audio recording of February’s Assembly Science, Innovation and Technology committee hearing where companion Kids Code bill A4015 passed unanimously may be found here.

To learn more about the New Jersey Kids Code Coalition, visit https://kidscodecoalition.org/new-jersey/. 

Please contact [email protected] with requests for further comment.

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ABOUT EPIC

The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) was established in 1994 to protect privacy, freedom of expression, and democratic values in the information age. Our mission is to secure the fundamental right to privacy in the digital age for all people through advocacy, research, and litigation.