As kids become tweens and teens, limiting their screen time gets harder and harder. After all, they have their phones and plenty of good (or at least reasonable) reasons why they need to have their devices on them at any given time. But, of course, even the most responsible teenagers aren’t spending all their screen time being productive and studious. No, like many of us, they’re spending a good amount of time mindlessly scrolling social media. And starting January 2026, the state of Virginia restricts users under the age of 16 to just one hour of social media per day.
The law is an amendment to the state’s Consumer Data Protection Act and puts the onus on social media companies like Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, and YouTube to verify users’ ages (using “neutral and commercially reasonable methods”); restrict access to their platforms to one hour a day; and only use data collected for age verification purposes.
While Governor Glenn Youngkin wanted to strengthen and expand some of the bill’s children’s privacy protections, the legislature ultimately did not adopt his recommendations.
Given ongoing debates about children and phones, especially in schools, it’s probably not a coincidence that it was co-sponsored by State Senator Schuyler VanValkenburg, a teacher.
“We know social media is negatively impacting kids; at school, home and in their community,” he wrote on X. “This bill is a national leader in tackling those issues by setting as a default a limit on kids time on social media apps.”
Of course, the bill is not a panacea for overuse of social media apps. Enforcement safeguards remain unclear and, as any parent of a teen can tell you: they have this quirky little habit of getting around our best efforts. Moreover, parents can opt their children out of the imposed limit, though parents can also increase time restrictions as well.
So make sure your homework is done and your chores are done, kids.
