{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://auchincloss.house.gov/media/press-releases/reps-auchincloss-houchin-introduce-bipartisan-16-and-up-social-media-act-to-keep-kids-under-16-off-addictive-social-media-platforms", "Reps. Auchincloss, Houchin Introduce Bipartisan 16 & Up Social Media Act to Keep Kids Under 16 Off Addictive Social Media Platforms", "2026-09-15", "2026", "2026-09", "Democrat", "House", "MA", "Jake Auchincloss", "A000148", "auchincloss.house.gov", "auchincloss", "https://auchincloss.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE\n\nContact: Georgina.Burros@mail.house.gov (Auchincloss)\n\nWashington, D.C. \u2014 Congressman Jake Auchincloss (D-MA) and Congresswoman Erin Houchin (R-IN), co-chairs of the bipartisan Kids Online Safety Caucus, introduced the 16 & Up Social Media Act to establish a national age standard of 16 for social media platforms.\n\nSocial media companies are the merchants and miners of digital dopamine, spending hundreds of billions of dollars annually to manipulate, monetize, and attention-frack America\u2019s youth. Platforms built on infinite scroll, autoplay, push alerts, and personalized feeds are designed to keep users hooked. Children are the least equipped to resist these algorithms, as their prefrontal cortices \u2014 which are vital for controlling behavior \u2014 remain underdeveloped. The 16 & Up Social Media Act sets and enforces a minimum age of 16 for social media use, protecting children from these addictive platforms.\n\nThe 16 & Up Social Media Act:\n\nSets a national age standard of 16: Prohibits covered social media platforms from allowing users under 16 to create or maintain accounts.\n\nFocuses on design features: Applies strictly to platforms that use engagement-driven design features (like infinite scroll and personalized feeds) to target users. It does not regulate content.\n\nEnsures privacy and accountability: Mandates the deletion of children's data upon account termination and requires platforms to implement a clear, five-day appeals process for any account closures.\n\n\u201cSocial media corporations addict children for profit,\u201d said Rep. Auchincloss. \u201cThe exploitation must stop. Our kids deserve their childhoods back.\u201d\n\n\u201cEvery parent knows the feeling of watching a child disappear into a screen,\u201d said Rep. Houchin. \u201cThese platforms were engineered by the smartest people in the world to hold attention, and they are winning that fight against our kids. Studies show that sixteen is the right line. This bill draws it clearly, applies it to every platform that uses these addictive features, and puts real enforcement behind it. Kids get their childhood back, and parents get a bright line they can rely on.\u201d\n\n\u201cChildren's wellbeing is shaped by technologies that were designed for addiction yet face almost no oversight,\u201d said Jonathan Haidt, Social Psychologist, NYU Stern School of Business, and author of The Anxious Generation. \u201cThis is not a parenting problem. It is a structural problem, and it demands a structural response. The goal is to stop addictive design entirely. Until then, gaining access to platforms with manipulative, unsafe design needs age minimums. The 16 & Up Social Media Act delivers exactly that.\u201d", 1, "2026-09-16T09:43:13Z", "2026-09-16T09:44:22Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://auchincloss.house.gov/media/press-releases/reps-auchincloss-houchin-introduce-bipartisan-16-and-up-social-media-act-to-keep-kids-under-16-off-addictive-social-media-platforms"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.4785000239498913, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}