11th Circuit sides with Florida over social media ban for minors

The federal appeals court decision bolsters the state’s ongoing battle against tech giants over children’s social media use.ATLANTA (CN) — A Florida law restricting minors’ access to social media platforms is likely constitutional, the 11th Circuit ruled Wednesday, reversing a lower court’s preliminary injunction sought by tech industry groups while the legal challenge continues.In its 59-page opinion, the panel said HB 3, which bans certain social media accounts for children under 14 and requires parental permission for those 14 to 15 years old, does have First Amendment implications, but can pass constitutional review because it does not target types of speech.“Yes, it implicates the First Amendment and thus triggers constitutional scrutiny,” wrote U.S. Circuit Court Judge Kevin Newsom, a Trump appointee. “But it likely does so in a content-neutral manner, and it likely survives intermediate scrutiny because it doesn’t burden substantially more speech than necessary to advance the important interest in protecting minors from social-media addiction.”U.S. Circuit Court Judges Robert Luck, another Trump appointee, and Gerald Tjoflat, a Gerald Ford appointee, concurred.HB 3 was one of the major priorities of Florida’s 2024 legislative session and received support from Republicans and Democrats alike, worried about the potentially harmful effects of social media use among teens such as depression, anxiety and bullying. The law targets platforms with certain “addictive features,” such as “like counts” and “infinite scrolling.”Tech industry groups NetChoice and the Computer and Communications Industry Association filed a First Amendment lawsuit against the Florida Attorney General’s Office after its passage, contending parents should have the freedom to restrict their children’s internet use. The groups, whose members include Meta, Snap and Google, also expressed dismay that the bill’s broad language disregards adults’ privacy rights.Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker of the Northern District of Florida initially threw out the case, but the Barack Obama appointee later granted a preliminary injunction after an amended complaint. A divided 11th Circuit panel lifted the injunction in November and fast-tracked the current appeal, holding oral arguments in March.In Wednesday’s ruling, the appellate judges said the law will likely pass constitutional muster when the legal challenge resumes in district court because legislators narrowly tailored it.“HB 3 operates not as an outright prohibition of platform usage but rather as a ‘conditional ban’ of sorts—namely, on platforms’ use of addictive features and algorithms,” Newsom wrote.“HB 3 is facially content neutral: It regulates social-media platforms based on their functional capabilities and features, not the content they communicate,” the judge continued. “The law neither references the substance of the speech on any platform nor draws distinctions based on it.”The Florida Attorney General’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.The Computer and Communications Industry Association criticized the ruling.“This ruling is deeply concerning and risks altering First Amendment protections against government interference in online speech for users young and old alike,” CCIA President Matt Schruers said in a statement. “It grants the government considerable power to manage how its citizens access information, based on Florida’s unsubstantiated claims about addiction. In the name of curbing overuse, the decision risks imposing identity authentication on Floridian internet users of all ages.”Florida’s Republican leaders have focused heavily on social media companies’ effects on children. Soon after the tech industry groups’ legal challenge, Attorney General James Uthmeier targeted Snap with a lawsuit of his own in state court. He also sued TikTok and Meta. Last year, the attorney general went after Roblox for insufficient age verification controls to prevent children from accessing adult content while also allowing adults to contact minors.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads