House Advances Bill to Protect Children from Social Media, Prohibit Cell Phones in Schools, Building on Legislation Initially Filed by State Representative Lipper-Garabedian

Bill also requires school districts to educate students on the responsible use of social media

BOSTON – Wednesday, April 8, 2026 – State Representative Kate Lipper-Garabedian (D-Melrose) joined the Massachusetts House of Representatives today to pass a bill requiring social media companies to implement age verification systems to prohibit users under the age of 14 and require parental consent from prospective social media users aged 14 and 15. Additionally, the bill will protect students from distracting technology during the school day by prohibiting the use of cell phones from school arrival through dismissal. The bill also will require districts to educate students in age-appropriate ways about the responsible use of social media, including potential harms to emotional and mental health and bullying. This bill builds on underlying legislation that Representative Lipper-Garabedian filed this session, the STUDY Act, in partnership with Assistant Majority Leader Alice Peisch (D-Wellesley), Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell, and State Senator Julian Cyr (D-Provincetown).

“As a former seventh grade public school teacher and mom of two school-aged boys, I’m reminded every day that the world in which I grew up and the one in which I taught are long gone. Now, our kids can access vast libraries of digital content any time and any place, with ease that was unimaginable even ten years ago,” said State Representative Lipper-Garabedian (D-Melrose). “That’s why I filed the STUDY Act this session. In enacting the bell-to-bell cell phone provisions, Massachusetts will join the more than 20 states that already have such a policy in place. We know how distracting cell phones are for adults. This legislation will let our kids be full-time students and their educators support them without distraction in their academic and social pursuits.

“We also have a responsibility to lead on consumer protection issues, particularly for our most vulnerable, including our children. As the recent Surgeon General Vivek Murthy acknowledged, ‘The mental health crisis among young people is an emergency – and social media has emerged as an important contributor.’ As House Chair of the Emerging Technology Legislative Caucus, I recognize that digital technologies can improve the quality of life for our residents, and Massachusetts has a proud tradition of nurturing and investing in our innovative economy. The sudden influx of big tech’s ads assuring parents like me that our kids are safe on their platforms – platforms that are decades old, older than the kids themselves – is too little, too late. We have the duty and responsibility to stand up for our children and families.”

The House bill provisions are as follows:

Social Media Ban for Children

• Requires social media companies to implement an age verification system based on the best technology available in order to reasonably and accurately identify a current or prospective user’s age

• Prohibits minors under the age of 14 from social media platforms, by requiring platforms to terminate users under said age and delete associated personal information effective October 1, 2026.

• Requires social media platforms to acquire verifiable parental consent for 14- and 15-year-old users of their platforms

• Platforms must publicly post information related to:

  • The number of users processed using the age verification system

  • The number of users granted access to the social media feed due to the age determination appeal process

  • The number of users denied access to the social media feed due to the user not meeting age requirements

  • The number of users granted access to the social media feed after providing the platform with verifiable parental consent

  • The number of account user age verification review requests

  • The number of accounts subsequently terminated for not meeting age requirements due to account user age verification review requests

• Platforms found to be in violation of these requirements will be subject to civil fines.

• Prohibits social media platforms from sharing information about a minor’s LGBTQ+ status or other characteristics protected under state law.

• Directs the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) and the Department of Public Health (DPH) to provide guidance to districts on effective instruction on social media use.

• Directs the AGO  to promulgate regulations for online protections, annually review the definition of “social media platform,” and maintain a public platform for reporting potential violations. 

Requirements for School Districts

• Must implement a policy prohibiting the use of personal electronic devices as determined by the School Committee. Districts must implement the policy during the school-day and during school sponsored activities occurring during the school-day. Districts must also notify parents of said policy and ensure that parents still have the ability to contact their children during the school day and vice versa. This prohibition can be put into effect by way of:

  • Secure storage of personal electronic devices

  • The use of technology that renders personal electronic devices inoperable

  • Other methods, which will require the approval of DESE

• Must file their policy annually, no later than September 1st, to DESE.

• Districts must make accommodations and exceptions as necessary, including for students with: IEPs or disabilities that require the use of personal electronic devices; documented medical needs, including to treat or monitor a health condition; language access and translation needs, as authorized by the superintendent or a designee. Accommodations and exceptions must also be made in the event of an emergency.

Requirements for DESE

• Provide guidance, recommendations, and a model policy to help districts with developing and implementing effective policies regarding the prohibition of personal electronic devices during the school day

• Includes discipline safeguards to ensure that expulsion/suspension can't be imposed solely for violating device policies.

• Includes DESE reporting requirements on implementation device policies, and effects of social media education.

Pilot Program

• DESE must issue a request for proposals for a pilot program in which 10 districts may participate that shall provide for a technological means of rendering a personal electronic device inoperable on school grounds during the school day.

• DESE may select one or more bidders to provide such technology. In making such selection, DESE must consider the technology’s:

  • Compliance with state and federal privacy laws;

  • Flexibility to allow districts to provide access to applications other than those designed for texting or talking;

  • Ability to allow parents and students to communicate with each other;

  • Ability to allow communication between students and emergency providers (911)

• The geo-fencing pilot includes privacy safeguards, including that providers can't collect data for advertising or profiling.

The bill passed the House of Representatives 129-25. Having passed the Senate already, the bill now goes back to the Senate for further consideration.

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