ATLANTA —Above video: Your Thursday headlinesGeorgia parents will have to approve social media accounts for children 15 and younger under a state law that can move forward after a federal appeals court lifted an order blocking it.The ruling Thursday by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals clears a major legal obstacle for Senate Bill 351, which requires covered social media platforms to verify users’ ages and confirm parental consent before allowing minors under 16 to open accounts.The court vacated a preliminary injunction issued by a federal district judge in June 2025 and returned the case to the lower court for further proceedings. The decision allows Georgia to move forward with the law, although the underlying constitutional challenge remains unresolved.Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr called the ruling a victory for families.“This is a major win for Georgia families and a huge blow to those who would stand in the way of commonsense solutions to protect our kids,” Carr said. “This is about keeping our children safe from online predators and mental health harms. Nothing is more important.”What the ruling means for familiesFor Georgia parents, the most immediate impact is greater authority over whether younger children may create accounts on covered social media platforms.Under SB 351, platforms that require accounts must make “commercially reasonable efforts” to determine a user’s age. If a user is younger than 16, the platform must confirm that the child has permission from a parent or guardian.The law also limits platforms’ ability to use minors’ personal information for targeted advertising, although age and location data may still be used.Some online services are exempt, including those primarily used for email, streaming, shopping, gaming, video conferencing, cloud storage and education.Appeals court says NetChoice did not meet its burdenGeorgia lawmakers passed SB 351 in 2024, and the law was scheduled to take effect July 1, 2025. NetChoice, a trade association representing major internet and social media companies, sued and sought to block it.NetChoice argued that the age-verification and parental-consent requirements violated the First Amendment. It also claimed parts of the law were unconstitutionally vague and conflicted with Section 230 of the federal Communications Decency Act.A district court granted a preliminary injunction, preventing Georgia from enforcing the challenged provisions. Carr appealed.The appeals court agreed that NetChoice had standing to sue on behalf of its members but concluded that the association had not shown it was likely to prevail on its claims.The court said NetChoice failed to provide enough evidence about the full range of platforms and online activities covered by the law. Because different platforms host different types of content, the judges said, their First Amendment treatment may also differ.The ruling does not decide whether SB 351 is ultimately constitutional. Instead, it finds that NetChoice did not meet the legal standard required to block the law at this stage.Court rejects vagueness argumentsThe appeals court also rejected NetChoice’s preliminary arguments that the law was too vague and that its advertising restrictions were preempted by federal law.The district court had focused its vagueness ruling on the phrase “commercially reasonable efforts,” which describes how platforms must verify users’ ages and parental consent. The appeals court said NetChoice had not properly raised that specific argument in seeking the injunction.On Section 230, the court found that the targeted-advertising provision regulates a platform’s own use of minors’ personal information. It does not, the court said, improperly hold platforms responsible for content posted by other users.Broader debate continuesGeorgia officials say the law is meant to give parents more control and protect children from online dangers, including bullying, harassment, sexual exploitation and predatory behavior.In its appellate brief, the state also linked social media use among minors to depression, anxiety, self-harm, body-image concerns and sleep problems.NetChoice has argued that age verification and parental consent burden access to constitutionally protected speech and create uncertainty for online platforms.Those broader questions remain before the district court. NetChoice may continue challenging the law, including through claims focused on particular platforms or specific applications of SB 351.
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