House Bill 171 Alabama 2026 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Ben RobbinsRepresentative

Republican

Session

2026 Regular Session

Title

Social media; certain media feeds lacking age verification, Attorney General authorized to enforce

Summary

HB171 would require age verification or parental consent for addictive social media feeds in Alabama, restrict overnight notifications to minors, and mandate algorithm transparency, with enforcement by the Alabama Attorney General beginning no earlier than April 1, 2027 (effective October 1, 2026).

What This Bill Does

It makes it unlawful to provide an addictive feed to a minor without age verification or parental consent. It bars notifications to a minor between 12:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. It requires social media platforms to disclose how their algorithms work, including inputs and weights used to prioritize media, and to offer an accessible interface for users to express and enforce their content preferences. It authorizes the Attorney General to enforce the act, including notices and remedies such as injunctions, restitution, damages, and civil penalties, with a cure period for violations.

Who It Affects

• Covered operators: social media platforms that host addictive feeds would need to verify ages or obtain parental consent, limit minor access, provide algorithm disclosures, and implement user preference controls.
• Minors under 18 in Alabama and their parents/guardians: minors gain protections against non‑consented access and late‑night notifications, while parents may be involved in consent processes (though the act does not grant extra access to parents over a minor's data).

Key Provisions

• Section 2(a): It is unlawful to provide an addictive feed to a covered minor unless a reasonable age-verification method confirms the user is 18 or older, or verifiable parental consent is obtained.
• Section 3: Operators must provide an accessible interface for users to express preferences about what is recommended or blocked and must make reasonable efforts to align displayed media with those preferences.
• Section 4: Operators may not send notifications to a covered minor between 12:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m.
• Section 7: Operators must publicly disclose descriptions of algorithmic systems, inputs, and weights used in addictive feeds, and categorize weights into quartile groups by importance.
• Section 9: The Attorney General can enforce the act after a 30-day cure period following notice, including remedies such as injunctions, restitution, damages, civil penalties up to $5,000 per violation, and other relief; the AG also maintains a complaints website.
• Section 10: The act becomes effective October 1, 2026, with enforcement allowed no earlier than April 1, 2027.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 11, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Consumer Protection