Virginia attorney general to enforce social media limits for minors

Virginia will be enforcing the new provisions of state code limiting the use of social media for minors.

The Consumer Data Protection Act now requires anyone that controls or operates a social media platform to use “commercially reasonable methods” to determine if a user is younger than 16 years old. If so, then the platform shall limit the minor’s use of social media to one hour per day per social media site.

The minor’s parents or guardians would be able to give parental consent to increase or decrease the time limit.

The act was passed in 2023 but was updated with the new requirements by S.B. 854 in 2025. The new regulations would have started Jan. 1, but enforcement was stopped before when a lawsuit was filed against the attorney general’s office by NetChoice in the Eastern District of Virginia. NetChoice is a nonprofit trade association for internet companies. According to the court filings, the association’s members include Amazon, Discord, Duolingo, Ebay, Google (YouTube), Meta (Facebook and Instagram), Netflix, Reddit, X (formerly Twitter), Snap Inc (Snapchat).

Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones announced he would enforce the law in a Feb. 16 press release.

“As a father, there is nothing more important to me than the emotional, mental, and physical safety of our children,” said Jones. “Today’s announcement ensures that parents and caregivers have the final say in how much social media content their children consume, not the unscrupulous tech companies. By enforcing our consumer protection laws, Virginia can and will take meaningful steps to protect our children and hold bad actors accountable.”

The lawsuit began in November when NetChoice filed its initial complaint, then asked the judge for a preliminary injunction, or a court order preserving the status quo before the law went into effect. The suit was initially brought against former attorney general Jason Miyares, in his official capacity, and shifted to Jones when he took office.

NetChoice called the state law unconstitutional on First Amendment grounds. It argued minors use these websites to engage in “an array of First Amendment activity,” such as reading the news, talking about politics and religion, follow sports, reach colleges, build communities and showcase their creative talents. Enforcement of the time restrictions on minors enacted by the bill would also affect adults, NetChoice argues, by requiring the companies to determine the age of all users of the websites. The complaint also argued the law itself is violation of the commerce clause, existing federal law that restricts states from impairing interstate commerce.

Jones’ office filed a motion to have the lawsuit dismissed on Jan. 26. In a document supporting the motion to dismiss, his office argued NetChoice does not have standing to sue on behalf of its members and it “cannot sue on behalf of Virginia’s children or adults.”

“Not only has NetChoice not plausibly alleged associational standing, but it has not shown that it can sue for purported harms to Virginians,” reads the document. “NetChoice treats the First Amendment rights of its member platforms as little more than an afterthought, and for good reason. On its face, SB 854 does not restrict or alter the ‘expressive offering’ platforms may publish to their users. Nor does it impose any limits on a platform’s ability to choose the content it disseminates to a particular user. Indeed, NetChoice does not identify a single platform that has been unable to communicate any message to a single Virginian. Instead, NetChoice is far more concerned with alleging that SB 854 infringes the First Amendment rights of Virginia’s children, and, to a lesser extent, adults.”

The most recent order in the case was filed on Feb. 4 and pushed back any consideration for the motion to dismiss until after the court has ruled on NetChoice’s pending motion for a preliminary injunction.

Jones’ office will begin enforcement, according to the press release. Any evidence of violations will be sent to the relevant company, who will be given 30 days to remedy the violation. If no changes are made, “the Attorney General will file enforcement actions, which could result in up to $7,500 in civil penalties for each violation, as well as injunctive relief to stop violating social media platforms from continuing the conduct in violation of the law.”

Jones’ office encouraged Virginians to report violations of the new law to the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Section by filing a complaint. They can also call the Consumer Protection Hotline at (800) 552-9963 if calling from Virginia, or (804) 786-2042 if calling from the Richmond area or from outside Virginia.

Reporting by Lyra Bordelon, Staunton News Leader / Staunton News Leader