Senate Children and Families Committee, February 10, 2026 Video: https://vimeo.com/1163727717 (a timestamp t plays at https://vimeo.com/1163727717#t=s) Page: https://georgiacommons.org/meetings/2026-02-10/senate-children-and-families This is a machine transcript of the General Assembly's video, made by a speech-recognition model. It is not an official record and can mishear words, names, and numbers. Speakers are not identified. The video is the record: every timestamp links to the moment it plays. [0:16:00] Children and Families Committee to order. And, um, I'm gonna ask Senator Burns to open us up in prayer number five. [0:16:10] If you would, join me in prayer, please. Uh, Father God, we're richly blessed. We're blessed to be here, we're blessed to be in the Senate, we're blessed to be in Children and Families, and we're blessed to be in the great state of Georgia. We want you to help us with your guidance, share your wisdom with us. May we do what is right in your sight and the sight of the people of Georgia. Christ, I now pray. Amen. [0:16:31] Thank you. Okay, um, we have one bill on our calendar for today, and it's for a hearing only. And, uh, just so you guys will have a idea what's going on, we also have another Senate bill on the similar subject matter that we're gonna hear next week, and that will also be a hearing only. So, um, my vice chair, Senator Hatchett, is gonna present the bill. And, uh, you can just go over to the witness mic. [0:17:13] Hello, chairs. [0:17:14] Well, thank you, Madam Chair and members of the committee. You'll notice I have brought a substitute to this bill. The original bill was an outright ban on social media platforms for, uh, kids who are 14 years and younger. What we've seen across the country and other states is that that type of ban has been found to be an infringement on someone's First Amendment. [0:17:47] And so what I have done in the last really year is I've done a lot of research, I've read a lot of books. And I think before we get into what the bill does, I want to just kind of step back and tell you what my goal is and what I think the policy of this state should be. Essentially, I don't think social media companies, social media platforms should be able to use addictive algorithms, addictive feeds [0:18:36] against minors. And I say against minors because [0:18:44] right now with adults, you know, if you look at all of our laws, you know, we have age restrictions for tobacco, and age restrictions for alcohol and, you know, you have to be a certain age to drive a car. Um, there are a lot of vices out there. And as an adult, I think, I won't speak for all adults, but most adults know when enough is enough and when too much of a good thing is a bad thing. [0:19:15] Kids are different. And the way these platforms are designed, by nature they're designed to in, keep you engaged. And when you use technology that keeps adults engaged on children, I think that's a problem. So for those that may not be familiar with how social media feeds work, essentially everyone, everyone's social media account, for the most part, is, is specifically tailored to them and what will catch their eye. [0:19:56] So at some point, if someone's watching this committee meeting on, uh, on their newsfeed, th- they're not gonna know who I am unless they follow me. But more than likely, this'll pop up because they're interested in this subject, which is social media regulation for minors. [0:20:17] I want to be really clear about the purpose of this bill, because this bill is not about banning social media. It's not about censoring content, and it's not about telling parents how to raise their children. This is about one thing, which is stopping social media companies from using addictive algorithms on kids. For years, these platforms have told us they are neutral. They just host content. [0:20:49] They don't control how people use their products, but that's not true anymore. Modern social media platforms are engineered systems designed to maximize one thing, which is time spent on the app. And the way they do that is through algorithms that learn what keeps a user engaged and then push more of it. They push it faster, louder, and more emotionally charged. So if something on your feed makes you angry and you're someone that wants to engage with that, you'll see more of that. [0:21:24] If it makes you happy, you know, if you like seeing puppies, you'll see puppies. If you, you know, disagree with someone and you engage 'cause it makes you so mad, you're gonna see that. And as I was saying earlier, this may be a business decision for adults, but it's a serious problem when the user is a child. So there's a pretty popular book called The Anxious Generation, and it was written by a social psychologist named Jonathan Haidt, and he lays out what many parents, teachers, and doctors are already seeing firsthand. [0:21:59] We didn't just give kids smartphones We gave them algorithm-driven environments that never turn off, never end, and never encourage stopping. So there is plenty of research out there that shows this type of exposure raises anxiety and depression among teens, uh, increases sleep deprivation. Uh, there are- we see higher rates of self-harm and suicide, constant social comparison driven by algorithmic feeds, a loss of normal childhood development that used to happen offline. [0:22:39] And the key point that is made in that book is that it's not just the content, it's the design, the design itself. There's infinite scroll, autopay, algorithmic feeds optimized to keep kids hooked, variable rewards that mimic slot machines. And those aren't accidents, they're features, and this bill is aimed to target those features. It says that if a social media company knows an account belongs to a minor, it cannot use engagement-maximizing algorithms and design features on that child. [0:23:22] So no infinite scroll, no autoplay, no algorithmic feeds designed to keep kids glued to the screen, no late night push notification, notifications designed to pull them back in. Kids can still access lawful speech, they can still communicate, they can still participate, but what they can't be subjected to is engineered addiction. [0:23:52] And I want to emphasize something important from a constitutional standpoint is we rewrote this bill intentionally because courts have been very clear that states cannot ban minors from accessing lawful speech online. That's why this bill doesn't do that. Instead, this bill regulates platform content, not expression, and we regulate product design all the time, from seat belts to childproof caps on medicine when company design products in a way that harm kids. [0:24:30] And in my opinion, this is no different. This is a design. This bill also requires reasonable aid assurance. It doesn't require government ID uploads. It's not a state database. [0:24:46] Excuse me. The responsibility is on the platform, the company that profits from our attention to distinguish kids from adults in a commercial- a commercially reasonable way and apply those protections. Enforcement is limited to the Attorney General's office. There's no private right of action, so you're not gonna see people come up here to say, "Well, this is just gonna flood our courtrooms, and there's gonna be a ton of lawsuits." Uh, this is just about accountability. [0:25:20] And at the end of the day, I think the bill asks a simple question: Should billion-dollar tech companies be allowed to use the same addictive algorithms on children that they use on adults, knowing what we know about the mental health consequences? I believe the answer is no. This bill restores a boundary that technology erased. It protects kids without censoring speech, and it puts responsibility where it belongs on companies designing these systems. [0:25:55] There's another bill that the chairwoman talked about that deals with age verification, and I think one of the competing interests in the hall that you'll hear is, "Well, don't put it on the social media companies. Put it on the App Store," or, you know, "Don't put it on the App Store. Put it on the social media company." I think the age verification bill, and I'm up here advocating for another bill as we- I, I guess, as we speak, but the age verification bill I don't think works by itself, and this bill will not necessarily work by itself. [0:26:27] I think that they have to work in concert together because you can have, you can have requirements for the App Store to verify age, and then if that age is verified, these protections go into place. So you, you basically, when you hear the social media companies say, "No, no, no, no. App Store," and you hear App Store say, "No, no, no. Social media company," I think we can work together and put some responsibility on both of them so that really the internet can be a safer place for our kids. [0:27:03] And, you know, I've got four daughters myself. I've got a lot of friends, and I've got a lot of friends that are teachers. I've got a lot of friends that are, you know, physicians, nurses, and this is a regular topic of conversation that's brought up at my household and brought up in my community. I genuinely believe that there is a pandemic amongst our children right now that has stemmed from social media use, and I know that this bill may not be the perfect solution, which is why I really wanted to limit my testimony as much as I can to the policy and my g- and my end goal. [0:27:52] I'm thankful for the chairwoman for making this a hearing-only so that we don't take action on the bill right now, because I would like to hear from the App Store. I've heard-- Excuse me. I have heard from the app stores, uh, a- a- and social media companies, and I would love to hear their feedback. I've been encouraged that- Some social media platforms are already recognizing that there needs to be restrictions for minors, but having something codified I think is the way to go. [0:28:24] I think the policy in the state of Georgia is, needs to be that we are going to protect our children from this because if we don't, no one else will, and it'll be too late because by the time they reach adulthood and understand the consequences of [0:28:44] the exposure that they've had to social media, it'll be too late 'cause they'll already be addicted. So I'm happy to answer any questions. I'd ask for favorable consideration when it gets to that point, um, but thank you for your time. [0:29:01] Thank you. And Senator, before we take questions, can you just confirm the LC number that you're working from? [0:29:06] Yes. This would be LC number 640057S. [0:29:13] Thank you. And just, um, for the other committee members, the bill that we're going to address next week is Senate Bill 467, and that's Senator Cowsert's bill. So, um, we need to have a robust discussion, hopefully between parties that are not necessarily on the same page about it so that we can get to something that makes sense. With that, um, Senator Harrell, did you have someone that- [0:29:41] Yes. [0:29:42] Yeah. Let's get questions from the committee first for what we, where we are so far. Any questions? Okay. If not, Senator Harrell has someone that, um, is on Zoom, I believe. [0:29:56] And Madam Chair, just as we, as we discussed, I have another bill in retirement committee that I have to present. I'm gonna run over there and present and then come back, but I, I'm, I will definitely, any testimony that I miss, I'll, I'll watch. [0:30:09] Yeah. [0:30:09] I'll go back and watch. [0:30:10] Uh, yeah, just as everyone knows, all of our committee meetings are live streamed and archived, so people who can't be here the whole time can go back and watch the testimony. So we'll look forward to seeing you back again. Thank you. [0:30:22] I'll get back as quick as I can. [0:30:23] Okay. Okay. Senate Brass, we ready? [0:30:28] They should be. [0:30:31] There, there's gonna be two people on the Zoom and only one speaking. [0:30:34] Do you wanna introduce who they are, or do you want them to introduce themselves? Okay. I can't quite read your name on Zoom, but who's talking first? [0:30:54] I'm not sure. I'm happy to go first. I don't know if Mitali wants to go first. [0:30:57] Okay, great. Please introduce yourself. [0:31:01] Hello. My name is Katrina Fitzgerald, and I'm Deputy Director at the Electronic Privacy Information Center, EPIC. Uh, Chair Kirkpatrick, Vice Chair Hatchett, members of the committee, thank you for the opportunity to testify today. Uh, EPIC is an independent nonprofit. It was founded 30 years ago to secure the fundamental right to privacy in the digital age. And in recent years, EPIC has been very involved in defending reasonable kids' online safety laws from tech industry's First Amendment challenges. And we bring that expertise gained from our involvement in those legal challenges to help state legislators craft strong kids' online safety laws that can withstand constitutional challenge and hopefully deter the cases from being filed even in the first place. [0:31:44] Uh, but first I wanna talk to you a little bit about why Georgia should pass an age-appropriate design code. You know, kids spend a lot of time online, and this is by design. The more time a user spends on certain online products, the more money companies make. And as a result, many tech companies, from social media companies to video games, chat bots, and more, engineer their products to be addictive. They'll, uh, they collect massive amounts of data about kids, and then they use this information to manipulate them into staying on a platform longer. [0:32:18] As was already mentioned, they employ design practices borrowed from the gambling industry to keep kids scroll- scrolling. They bombard kids with notifications that disrupt their play and their schoolwork and their sleep, all to draw their attention back to the company's app. And all these practices undermine kids' autonomy to decide when they want to use an app, how much time they want to spend on the app, all so the company can serve kids more ads and make more money. And the research has shown that even when tech companies know that their design practices are harming kids, they will not change those practices if it decreases time spent on the platform. [0:32:59] And these choices the tech companies are making, these harmful design choices, are contributing to the youth mental health crisis by driving kids to overuse technologies at the expense of sleep, schoolwork, friends, healthy socializing. And parents can't solve this problem on their own. I'm a parent of a middle schooler, so I'm painfully aware of that fact. The right approach is to require the companies building these platforms to take responsibility for integrating privacy and safety by design in their products, right? [0:33:31] Making platforms less addictive will allow kids to make better choices about how they spend time online and will make their time online more positive. The bill Senator Harrell's currently collecting signatures for and will file shortly does just that, and it integrates the lessons learned from similar laws across the country and the latest research into the harms of addictive design. You know, it protects kids online by prohibiting specific design practices that have already been shown to carry significant risk of harm. [0:34:01] It requires companies to evaluate their design features for the risk of compulsive use before they put them out there and test them in real time on kids. And it gives kids agency over their online experiences by creating a privacy by default system. Importantly, as I mentioned, the bill is also carefully designed to withstand litigation challenges, right? A lot of states have passed kids' online safety laws. They've been sued by NetChoice. NetChoice just sued South Carolina last night. But this bill was specifically drafted to avoid those issues. [0:34:33] The committee substitute shares the same goals. I so appreciate Senator Hatchett's comments today. Uh, his bill and Senator Harrell's bill are trying to accomplima- accomplish the same thing. But based on EPIC's experience with these laws, I just think there's a few missing provisions in the committee substitute that tech companies will almost certainly exploit. Um, you know, it focuses only on engagement maximizing design features. Unfortunately, there's a lot of, um, problems with addictive design beyond that, like, um, s- surveilling users to determine what they're, what content they're seeing. [0:35:07] Um, it m- it's missing some much needed safety features, like protections for location data, privacy protections. Uh, one strong point of Senator Harrell's proposal is that it includes what's called baseline data minimization requirements, which makes it more difficult for strange adults to contact kids online, and it makes it easier for kids to control the content they see in their feeds. And then one last point I think, um, is important in the difference between the two is that the committee substitute's age assurance mandate isn't quite clear. [0:35:39] It seems that kids can simply self-attest to verify their age, and that means a lot of kids will miss out on the protections in the law, even when the company might have other knowledge that the user's a minor if the minor says they're old enough. Uh, Senator Harrell's model instead includes a constructive knowledge standard that requires a business to not turn a blind eye to information they have that a consumer's a minor. They know, they know whose kid who are kids on their platforms. Um, but it doesn't require the co- the business to collect any additional information to estimate the customer's age. [0:36:12] So again, like the committee proposal, there's no, um, no requirement to upload an ID or anything like that. So, uh, I'll close by saying we all share the goal of wanting to keep kids safe online. Um, the goals of the two proposals are the same, but we believe at EPIC that the proposal by Senator Harrell is the best approach to accomplish, uh, that goal, and we urge your support for it. Thank you, and I'm happy to take any questions. [0:36:36] Thank you very much. Questions from the committee? What's your... [0:36:43] Uh, okay, Senator Burns. [0:36:44] Thank you. Thank you for your input. I appreciate the, uh, the insights. Um, the bill we have before us today is Senate Bill 343, is that correct? [0:36:54] Yep. [0:36:55] Yes. [0:36:56] So, a- a- a- you referred to s- Senator Harrell's proposal that... [0:37:01] May I clarify? [0:37:02] Sure. [0:37:02] Yeah. [0:37:02] Please. [0:37:03] Please. [0:37:04] Okay. So, um, the, the bill you have before you is, is Senator Hatchett's sub- committee substitute- [0:37:10] Substitute [0:37:11] ... to, uh, Senate Bill 343. [0:37:14] 3. [0:37:15] It, it has some of the language from my bill that, uh, I'm currently cor- collecting signatures on, but have not yet dropped. So, so this bill before you is three pages, mine is 20. Um, so, um, what the- [0:37:31] Okay [0:37:31] ... what Ms. Far- Fitzgerald is saying is that there are, are things in the bill I'm about to propose that you don't see there today, and that this can be improved. I, I don't care which bill goes forward, uh, Senator Hatchett's or, or mine, but this, this bill that we have in front of us does have some significant loopholes, um, that we can work on. [0:37:50] I, I, my, my point was really just clarification because you're referring to a bill that's not in front of the committee, and it's at, it hasn't even been dropped yet. I mean, I just got a initial copy of it today, and w- we'll see where that goes. I think my, my specific question relates to, um, the enforcement mechanism in line thir- uh, 56 and 57. In your experience, have you seen enforcement, successful enforcement by exclusively vesting it in an attorney general in the state? [0:38:26] Um, no. The hard part with attorney general enforcement only is that, uh, AGs are overwhelmed. They're, you know, worked, and these are big cases to bring. You're talking about going up against some of the biggest companies in the world. So that's why EPIC has long pushed that, uh, it is important for individuals or families to have the ability to bring cases to, uh, ensure that their rights are protected under a law like this. [0:38:56] And, and, and how would they do that? [0:39:01] Br- to bring cases? [0:39:03] Bring a- [0:39:03] Are you- [0:39:03] Bring a lawsuit, yeah. Sue, sue the companies [0:39:05] So you're, you're- [0:39:05] ... on their platform [0:39:06] ... you're advocating for a cause of action? [0:39:07] Yes. Mm-hmm. [0:39:08] Okay. [0:39:09] But I'm not sure- [0:39:09] All right [0:39:09] ... to be honest, whether that's in Senator Harrell's proposal. I apologize. [0:39:13] Uh, uh. [0:39:13] I, I believe it is. [0:39:14] Okay. [0:39:15] Okay. [0:39:16] Um, thank you. We'll come back. Thank you, Madam Chair. [0:39:22] Any other questions? Thank you very much. Are you gonna hang around, or are you leaving? [0:39:30] I can hang around if it's helpful. [0:39:32] Okay. And then we have one more person on Zoom to testify. [0:39:38] She's listening. [0:39:39] She's just listening? Okay. Thank you very much for being here. We do have some people in the room who want to testify, so we'll go ahead and, uh, get them over to the podium, Mike, starting with Mike Griffin. [0:39:59] Thank you, Madam Chair. My name is Mike Griffin. I'm the public affairs representative for the Georgia Baptist Mission Board, and, uh, we do support this legislation. I did not know about all the substitutes until just a few moments ago. But, um, our point that we do with Georgia Baptist, and again, we represent about 1.4 million Georgians and up to 3,400 churches And we're very strongly against any expansion of alcohol, and gambling, and marijuana, those types of things. But what we also are for is making sure that we get as much restriction as possible over our children to protect them, to make sure they're protected, because one of my three areas at Georgia Baptist has to do with child protection policy against child sex abuse, those types of things. [0:40:44] And one of our six major areas here at the Capitol, and I've got a whole list of bills, it has to do with child protection. And so we do support this legislation. I, I appreciate, appreciate Senator Hatchett doing this because I work with this. I just did four break- uh, six breakout sessions, sessions all over the state dealing with child sex abuse and those types of things, and a lot of it does have to do with access on the internet and all these types of things with tech. Um, I mean, I got information back in '22, uh, from, from 2022 that, uh, 52% of the, that of our sex abuse now is peer to peer, so children are getting access to, to much, too much stuff. [0:41:27] And, um, some of them are being, uh, having pornography on them, not that they're even seeking it. It ends up seeking them. So I think when you're talking about dealing with these algorithms, these, these types of things that are targeting children, whether it be for some other reason, but mental health issues you've mentioned as well, we do think this is good legislation, and we would certainly be willing to work with you on, on continuing to go in this direction, so thank you, Madam Chair. [0:41:54] Thank you very much. Any questions for Mr. Griffin? Thank you. [0:41:59] Thank you. [0:42:00] Okay. Next, Kyle Rodler. [0:42:08] Um, thank you very much for, um, hearing my testimony. My name is Kyle. I'm with the AllSafe App, and we're working in a private public partnership with the Technology Infrastructure Committee on the House side, and I am very supportive of this legislation that you guys have over here on the Senate side. And I just wanted to make, um, a couple comments, um, to piggyback on what Senator Hatchett had said about the enragement equals engagement and w- what, that's what's driving the use of these w- these, uh, social media platforms is the more angry they can make our children, the more useful they are to feed our children this, quote unquote, garbage that they're ingesting through that. [0:42:50] And one of the s- uh, solutions that AllSafe App offers is we've found that mental health is one of the main causes of loneliness and isolation, which is the result of these, the use of these internet, um, platforms. They become isolated, bullied, and then they become lonely, and that loneliness is eventually what leads to violence. And what we found is, in my deep research for three years with Kennesaw State University, Georgia State University, the Apalachee School System, um, we're running, uh, y- a pilot program with Clayton, Grayson, and Apalachee with Hope Persinger, Segun Adeniya, and, uh, Eric Bell. [0:43:30] And I'm hoping to get, um, some of the, the research that we found is that 80% of the mental health and trauma that these students experience goes unreported because of the stigmatization of being made fun of if they get seen going to the counselor's office. So the AllSafe App platform, what makes us different is we offer a HIPAA compliant virtual call where any student can access a call with a GBHDD certified counselor from their school device or their own device. [0:44:01] And this is done in complete privacy, anonymously, and without anyone watching them or making fun of them. And at the end of the call, to comply with HB 268, the parents and the school get a copy of the transcript. So now you're bringing parents into the solution, where if you have a 14-year-old that accesses, or someone younger, accesses the internet, our app could help compliance with your legislation to where these students are taking off those platforms or a, a, a resolution is, is made. So thank you for your time, and I would love to email you some information and get an appointment later. [0:44:37] I really appreciate it, and it's AllSafeApp.com. Thank you. [0:44:40] Thank you. Any questions? Thank you very much. Okay, Brandi Blue. [0:44:57] Good afternoon, Madam Chair and the committee. My name is Brandi Blue. I'm a legislative fellow with the ACLU of Georgia. Um, we were here to oppose the bill, and now we look forward to reviewing the sub back with my colleagues at the ACLU. But I just wanna make one quick point that we don't forget about the rights of young people while we're making these decisions. We know that the goal is to protect children, and we all want to protect children, but young people also have First Amendment rights, and those rights should be protected as well. [0:45:28] The ACLU looks forward to working with you to get together on a good version of this bill to find the balance. Thank you. [0:45:38] Thank you very much. Any questions from the committee? Okay, and then, uh, Michael Lawson. [0:45:50] Uh, thank you, committee. My name is Michael Lawson Jr. I represent AllSafe App, and I just wanna reiterate the points that, uh, Kyle made that, you know, the app that we have developed really provides some guardrails for mental health advocacy and encouraging, uh, young people and giving them the opportunity and resources to connect with a mental health professional for 15 minutes anonymously, um, and really circumvent a lot of the stigma related with young people connecting with mental health professionals. 'Cause as we know, as these young people engage with social media, um, they may be able to circumvent the age verification, and they might still land on the platform. [0:46:28] Um, but the beauty of Kyle's, uh, app that he's developed is it i- identifies, um, threatening behavior from minors on social media platforms and connects that, uh, young person directly with a mental health counselor that can, um, be a buffer between law enforcement, uh, in the community before a crisis happens. And thank you for allowing us to share. [0:46:52] Thank you very much. Any other people in the room who didn't sign up who wanna say anything? I have a feeling there will be some more commentary on this at a later time. So, uh, with that, we will be meeting next week. And, uh, unless anybody has anything else for the good of the order, we're adjourned. Thank you.