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California Didn’t Ban Kids’ Accounts. It Banned the Addictive Design.

EdSource reported that kids under 16 would lose their social media accounts. That is not what the law does. AB 1709 bans the addictive design instead, like the algorithm feed and autoplay. Here is why the design is the real target. And here is what to do before January.

Last updated · 6 min read
California Didn’t Ban Kids’ Accounts. It Banned the Addictive Design.

You ask your child to put the phone down. Ten minutes later, she is still scrolling. You are not imagining how hard it is to stop. California just signed a law aimed at that pull. EdSource reported that kids under 16 would lose their accounts. It bans the design instead.

Parents have questions about California’s new social media law. Here are plain answers.

Common questions

Does California’s new law ban social media for kids under 16?
No. AB 1709 does not ban accounts for users under 16. It bans “addictive features” for them. The bill names algorithm feeds and autoplay. Reports add endless scroll and push alerts. A platform is free to keep the account if it drops those features. A parent saying yes does not bring them back. The account must go only if a platform will not offer that version.
When does California’s AB 1709 take effect?
AB 1709 was signed on September 10, 2026. It takes effect on January 1, 2027. Until then, platforms do not have to change anything under it. After that, the state Attorney General or a local prosecutor enforces it. Families have no right to sue under it. No one has enforced it yet. How platforms respond is still an open question.
Is social media bad for my child?
It depends on the child. Orben and Przybylski (2019) looked at tech use and young people’s well-being. The average link was small. In our view, the clearest harm is comparison. A 2023 Media Psychology review found seeing better-off people lowered self-esteem. To us, that lands hardest on a child already fighting for confidence. So watch your own child, not the average.
How do I cut back my child’s social media without a fight?
Start with the settings, not a lecture. Turn off push alerts. Turn off autoplay where the app allows it. Pick phone-free times together, like meals and bedtime, and keep them yourself too. Expect pushback when the screen goes off, and stay calm. Then give her something real to feel good about. Ask her: Am I better than I was yesterday?
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California's new law didn't ban kids' social media accounts. It banned the design instead: addictive feeds and autoplay. Right target. And parents don't have to wait for it.

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What does California’s new law do?

California’s AB 1709 became law on September 10, 2026. It takes effect on January 1, 2027. It does not ban social media accounts for users under 16. It bans “addictive features” for them.

The bill defines these as “psychologically exploitative features intended to maximize engagement that foreseeably lead to compulsive use.” The bill names two examples: feeds built from a user’s data, and autoplay. News and legal reports add endless scroll and push alerts. A platform is free to keep the account. It has to drop those features. A parent saying yes does not bring them back. If a platform will not offer that version, it must delete the account. The child’s data goes too.

Only the state Attorney General or a local prosecutor enforces the law. Families have no right to sue under it. A knowing violation carries a fine of up to $50,000 per child affected. A negligent one carries up to $25,000. The law also sets up an e-Safety Advisory Commission. It sits in the state Department of Justice. The bill passed with no recorded “no” votes, MyNewsLA reported.

Psychologically exploitative features intended to maximize engagement that foreseeably lead to compulsive use.

Laura Lurns · Learning Success expert
California Didn’t Ban Kids’ Accounts. It Banned the Addictive Design.

Why go after the design and not the birthday?

The common take treats this as a question of access. Keep kids off until a set birthday, and they are safe. We call this the age-gate reflex. It puts the focus on the child’s age. The design gets a pass.

The design is where the pull comes from. Likes and comments show up at random times. A reward that comes at random keeps people checking. That idea goes back to Skinner’s work on reward. Clark and Zack (2023) apply it to social media. They argue the pull grows as rewards get less predictable and more frequent. Endless scroll takes away the natural place to stop. Alerts call the user back. That is a description of how these products are built. It is not a test of harm in children. One key test used adults playing a slot machine game (James and colleagues, 2016).

To us, the clearest harm tied to social media is comparison. Vogel and colleagues studied it in 2014. Seeing people who seemed better off lowered people’s self-esteem. A 2023 review in Media Psychology found the same direction across many studies. That review did not look at children alone. And Orben and Przybylski (2019) looked at tech use and young people’s well-being. The average link was small. Our worry is the child it hits hardest. That is a child already fighting for confidence.

Key takeaways

  1. Design, not the account: AB 1709 bans addictive features for users under 16, not their accounts.
  2. The pull outlasts the law: At 16 the law steps away, yet the design pulls as hard as ever.
  3. Start at home now: Turn off alerts and autoplay today, and teach your child to measure against yesterday.

What does this mean for my child?

The law aims at the right target. But it has limits. It does not start until January 1, 2027. No one has enforced it yet. No study we hold has tested a law like this in children. And the day a child turns 16, the law stops covering her. The design pulls as hard as it did the day before.

You do not need to wait for the law. Turn off push alerts. Turn off autoplay where the app allows it. Set phone-free times, like meals and bedtime. In one large study, adults were paid to quit Facebook for a few weeks. They said they felt better (Allcott and colleagues, 2020). That study was in adults, so read it as a direction, not a promise. Some nights, turning off the screen starts a fight. Our page Screen Time Battles and Transitions Off Devices walks through that moment.

Then give her something better to measure herself by. A feed asks her to compare herself with everyone. Teach a different question: Am I better than I was yesterday? Point to proof she sees, like a hard thing she finished this week. As we put it: “A points system makes a child feel like they’re learning. Real mastery makes them feel capable.” Our page Confidence Comes From Evidence, Not Encouragement shows how to set that up. The law starts in January. You start tonight.

You know your child better than any rule does. We push back on the age-gate reflex. That is the idea that a birthday keeps a child safe. The design keeps pulling at every age. So we build on real wins she notices, with you beside her. Our free Confidence Account download shows you how to bank those wins.

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References

· Learning Success expert Writes about the learning brain for parents who want plain answers. Every article is grounded in current neuroscience and classroom practice.

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