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Legislative Tracker

Public-source posture estimateNot legal adviceMap regenerated2026-05-08 · 8 May 2026

Youth & Social Media

California

Specific rule in effect.Trending toward more guardrails.

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Enjoined or blocked. A court order or other official action is currently pausing enforcement.

Sources

leginfo.legislature.ca.govCalifornia SB 976 — Protecting Our Kids from Social Media Addiction Act

Why this status

California's SB 976 (the Protecting Our Kids from Social Media Addiction Act) is on the books, but federal litigation in NetChoice v. Bonta (2024) has paused enforcement of key provisions while the case is on appeal. The rule is enacted but isn't being enforced today — which is unusual enough to be the load-bearing fact on this card.

What this means

California has a state-level rule that, on its face, limits algorithmic feeds and notifications to minors. The substantive obligations are not in effect today because of a federal court order.
Whether and when the rule comes back into force depends on the litigation — the California Attorney General's posture on appeal and any federal appellate ruling are what move this forward.
While enforcement is paused, families in California effectively look to federal rules and platform-set youth defaults for now, the same as in states without an enacted rule.

What to verify next

Read the current text of SB 976 on the California Legislature site if you want to see what would apply once the court order lifts.
Check coverage of NetChoice v. Bonta — or the California AG's litigation page — before assuming SB 976's substantive obligations are being enforced.

How this was scored →