US House committee reaches bipartisan deal on social media rules for youth

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee leaders said Monday they have reached a bipartisan agreement on legislation aimed at requiring social media platforms to provide stronger safeguards and tools for children and parents, marking a significant step in a long-running effort to address online child safety.

Committee Chairman Brett Guthrie and top Democrat Frank Pallone declined to release detailed provisions of the agreement but said the framework is intended to “hold Big Tech accountable.”

“We worked across the aisle for many months and have now found common ground on policies to significantly improve the digital environment for kids,” Guthrie and Pallone said in a joint statement.

The agreement comes amid growing scrutiny in the United States over the impact of social media on young users, with parents, advocacy groups and some state officials calling for tighter restrictions, including limits on smartphone use in schools.

The bipartisan deal also addresses several long-debated issues in social media regulation. Notably, it does not include a “duty of care” provision, according to a spokesperson for House Republicans. Such a provision would have required companies to design platforms with children’s safety as a primary consideration. Lawmakers, including some Democrats and Senate Republicans such as Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn, have previously pushed to include the measure in children’s online safety legislation, making negotiations more difficult.

Under the agreement, states would still be permitted to enact social media laws that provide “greater protection” than the federal framework, a provision seen as a win for lawmakers seeking to preserve state-level authority.

The proposal still faces major hurdles before becoming law, including approval in the Senate and support from President Donald Trump. A spokesperson for Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment. House Speaker Mike Johnson has expressed support for the agreement, according to a source familiar with his position.

At the national level, Congress has repeatedly failed to pass comprehensive social media regulation, leading states to adopt their own measures. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, at least 20 states enacted laws last year addressing children’s use of social media.

Popular platforms among U.S. teenagers include Snapchat, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok, according to a December 2025 Pew Research Center report. The companies involved did not immediately respond to requests for comment following the announcement.

Previous reporting has noted that Meta Platforms has lobbied Congress for legal protections related to child harm claims tied to its products. Meta, TikTok, YouTube and Snap are currently facing thousands of lawsuits alleging that their platforms were designed in ways that harm young users. Legal experts have said any broad immunity provision could affect the outcome of those cases.

Asked about the lobbying effort, Meta spokesperson Stephanie Otway previously said the proposed language “does not extinguish existing lawsuits.” -Reporting by Courtney Rozen; Editing by Mark Porter and Sanjeev Miglani/Reuters