Cybersecurity Policy Report, Nebraska Governor Signs Age-Appropriate Design Code Bill Into Law, (Jun 3, 2025)
Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen (R.) has signed into law a bill to enact the Age-Appropriate Online Design Code Act to “protect the personal information of children who are online and give parents the ability to monitor privacy and account settings.”
This legislation was introduced as part of a package of bills that prioritized “protecting Nebraska’s children from harm resulting from big tech, social media and overuse of smartphones,” Gov. Pillen said in a statement. “LB 504 will protect user data, give parents the ability to manage and control privacy and account settings and limits the ability of tech companies to target children by encouraging excessive use.”
“We’re never going to give up on our kids. They are our future. Today marks a gigantic step in protecting our kids,” Gov. Pillen added. “Collectively all these bills have an incredible impact on helping our teachers and giving our schools the opportunity to teach our kids, instead of being disrupted in the classroom. They also provide parents with the tools they need to protect our kids from big tech online companies and predators.”
Under the act, a covered online service is required to protect user data of known minors under age 18 and provide options to limit certain design features. The bill defines a “covered online service” as one that “has minors as more than 2% of its total users, which operates in Nebraska and meets certain revenue or data volume thresholds.” The new law will not apply to government entities.
The new law, which takes effect Jan. 1, 2026, will also require a covered online service to provide covered minors with “easy-to-use” tools that prevent other individuals from viewing a minor’s personal data and limit covered design features.
Bill (L.B. 504, Reg Sess.) sponsor Sen. Carolyn Bosn (R.) said the purpose of LB 504 “was not about moderating content, but rather, ensuring that design features were made less addictive to young users.”
“We’re not going to wait for social media companies to do that anymore. We’re going to take matters into our own hands. Like the Governor said, we’re not going to give up on our kids and I think this piece of legislation really prioritizes kids and their experiences online,” Sen. Bosn said in a statement.
Gov. Pillen also signed into law LB 383, which was sponsored by Sen. Tanya Storer (R., District 43), to create the Parental Rights in Social Media Act. The measure requires social media companies to verify the age of users and minors must get parental consent before creating their accounts.
News: StateLegislation DataPrivacy