Alabama App Store Accountability Act (HB 161)
What it does
Signed February 17, 2026, and effective January 1, 2027. App stores must verify age at account creation, link minors to a parent, and get parental consent for downloads and purchases. The twist is retroactivity: stores must verify the age of every existing account in Alabama by October 1, 2027. Nobody is grandfathered in.
Why it matters
The other app store laws card you at signup. Alabama goes back and cards everyone who already has a phone. That converts the entire installed base of devices in the state into age-verified, identity-linked accounts within a year.
Our take
Retroactive verification is the mask slipping. This was sold as protecting kids opening new accounts, and it ends with every adult in Alabama proving who they are to keep using the phone they already own.
Votes
- House — Final passage (103 to 0)
- Senate — Final passage, as amended (35 to 0)
Timeline
- February 17, 2026Signed by Governor Ivey
- October 1, 2027Deadline to age-verify every existing account
Related bills
Our coverage: all age-verification stories