MESA, AZ — Lawmakers unveiled legislation on Wednesday that is aimed to ban kids under 13 from joining social media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram.
Many of the men and women who make up the 118th U.S. Congress are parents.
ABC15 spoke with parents including one who says his company created a smartphone unique to kids.
Greg Olson is not a lawmaker but a father of four, his kids range from 4 to 13 years old and are not on social media.
"I don't think they are mature enough or ready yet. From seeing how other kids react to it, I don't think it is healthy for them," said Olson.
He, however, is on social media. But, says he only uses it for professional reasons.
"Because I find even myself getting addicted to it. If I can get addicted to it as an adult, it's like I know what the kids can fall into,” added Olson.
A bipartisan group of senators unveiled a bill that would set a national minimum age for social media use at 13 and require tech companies to get parents' consent before creating accounts for teens.
"I think I'd definitely support it. I think it is going into the right direction especially with it being bipartisan and them wanting to work together. I think it is something we need to get behind,” added Olson.
Jeff Gottfurcht is also a father, who co-founded Cyber Dive. His team at the Valley-based company created a smartphone designed for kids which monitors everything a person does on the phone.
"All of that is sent to a parent dashboard in real-time. We also bundled that with a mental health check that locks down the phone three times a day,” said Gottfurcht.
The proposed legislation aims to address what policymakers, mental health advocates, and critics of social media consider a mental health crisis.
But, like some, Gottfurcht wonders about enforcement.
"I think there is a better way of doing that because a number of that stuff is not enforceable,” added Gottfurcht.
Most social media companies already ban kids younger than 13 years old. Many of those companies find it challenging to keep those under 13 off their platforms.
The bill would create a government-run age verification program to certify users' ages or parental status based on identification they upload to the government system or to a third-party verifier.
