New York Social Media Warning Labels (S.4505 / S.8827)
- Introduced
- Passed Senate
- Passed House
- Became Law
Signed December 19, 2025 (Chapter 689); rewritten by chapter amendment February 13, 2026 (Chapter 85); takes effect January 1, 2027
New York law that forces social media apps to show a state-written mental health warning every day, and spares adults only if the platform has worked out they are over 17.
Latest update
Take action
Learn about the issue and how to make your position known.
Take action on this issueThe bill
Official bill recordKey facts
- Where
- New York, United States
- Bill number
- New York S.4505 / A.5346, amended by S.8827 / A.9446
- Status
- Law
- Introduced
- February 6, 2025
- Threat
- Medium
- Last update
- February 13, 2026
Topics
Share this bill
What it does
The law covers social media platforms that offer an addictive feed, autoplay or infinite scroll. Each day, the first time a user gets one of those features, the platform must show a warning that cannot be skipped, covers at least a quarter of the screen and stays up for at least 10 seconds. After three hours of use in a day, the warning returns at least once an hour, covering three-quarters of the screen for at least 30 seconds. The wording is set in the law and cites the Surgeon General's warning that heavy social media use may be linked to mental health harms. Platforms need not show it to a user they have "reasonably determined" is over 17. The Attorney General enforces it, with civil penalties of up to $5,000 per violation. The February 2026 chapter amendment narrowed the covered features, wrote the warning text into the statute instead of leaving it to the mental health commissioner, and set the start date.
What’s at stake
This is compelled speech: the state writes a health message about lawful speech platforms and makes them display it to their users, on a timer. The over-17 exception also pushes platforms to sort users by age, since the only way to stop warning adults is to decide who is an adult. And the law states that the warning does not protect platforms from other lawsuits, including claims that they failed to warn.
Our take
Tobacco-style warnings on speech platforms treat reading and posting as a health hazard the state must interrupt. A full-screen notice every hour, after three hours of use, is meant to discourage use, not inform. Expect platforms that want to spare adults the warning to lean on age estimation, and expect a First Amendment challenge before January 2027.
Timeline
The record
Sponsor
Sen. Andrew Gounardes
Votes
- Senate: Passed (59 to 0), June 12, 2025
Suggest a bill or correction
Know a bill we should track, or spot something out of date? Email the bill name, the jurisdiction and a link to an official source.