South Carolina Age-Appropriate Design Code (H.3431)
What it does
Signed February 5, 2026 and effective immediately, with no cure period. Covered online services must exercise reasonable care in design and in their use of minors' data, undergo annual third-party audits with public reports due each July 1, and face treble damages for violations. Officers and employees can be held personally liable for willful violations. NetChoice has already filed suit.
Why it matters
The earlier kids codes gave companies a runway; South Carolina's switched on at the governor's signature. Personal liability for named employees is new to this fight, and it changes who feels the pressure: not the platform, the person. Add it to California, Maryland, Vermont, and Nebraska and the design-code map now runs coast to coast through both parties.
Our take
The versions get harsher state by state. South Carolina skipped the grace period, tripled the damages, and pointed the liability at individual employees. The mechanics underneath have not changed: to give minors the safe version, the service has to sort every visitor by age.
Votes
- House — Final passage (112 to 0)
- Senate — Passed unanimously; concurred · January 21, 2026
Timeline
- February 5, 2026Signed by Governor McMaster; took effect immediately
Legal challenges
Filed 2026; law in force
Related bills
Our coverage: all age-verification stories