Social media companies are seeking to block a Colorado law that they say will illegally compel them to act as a “mouthpiece” for the government. 

A group, NetChoice, which represents tech companies such as Meta, filed a federal lawsuit seeking to block HB 24-1136 from taking effect on January 1. 

The new law requires social media companies to display warnings for users under the age of 18 if they spend more than one hour on their platforms in a 24-hour period, or if they are active between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. The warnings are required to pop up every 30 minutes and inform users about research regarding the effects of social media on brain development. 

NetChoice argues the law violates the Constitution by compelling certain speech from companies. “At its core, this case is about one thing: compelled speech. Colorado is trying to force private websites to act as a mouthpiece for its preferred message,” the co-director of the NetChoice Litigation Center, Paul Taske, says.

Mr. Taske says the government is “free to share its views on any topic,” but it “cannot force private businesses to speak for it.”

The group’s lawsuit alleges HB 24-1136 “forces a content-based, speaker-based, and vague collection of ‘social media platforms’ to opine on the highly controversial purported effects of social media use on minors’ mental and physical health, in the form of repeated and burdensome notifications to minor user[s].”

NetChoice has challenged other social media laws, such as age verification requirements. Last week, the Supreme Court declined an emergency appeal from NetChoice, letting an age verification law take effect in Mississippi for now. 

A state senate co-sponsor of the Colorado bill, Judy Amabile, defended the law, saying, “The longer teens spend doom scrolling on social media, the higher their chances of experiencing anxiety, depression, and emotional distress. Coloradans recognize that social media presents a growing public health problem for our youth, and they want their leaders to take action.”

“Similar to the warnings we already place on many other consumer products, it’s time we help teens make informed choices by providing them with evidence-based information,” she said. 

A poll commissioned by Healthier Colorado found that 69 percent of Colorado voters said they support the law, and 90 percent said that social media has a “negative impact on the mental health of youth in Colorado.”

The chief executive of Healthier Colorado, Jake Williams, also defended the law, saying, “Our kids have been treated as guinea pigs in a profit-driven experiment by big tech. The results are in: social media use poses serious risks to youth mental health.”

“This common-sense approach empowers kids and families to make informed decisions, without imposing any restrictions on what content they consume. Social media companies are not entitled to unfettered access to our kids’ brains,” he said. 

Lawmakers in other states are working on passing similar bills. The California senate is considering a bill, already passed by the state assembly, that would require warning labels when a user first accesses a social media platform, and then after three hours of cumulative use.

Earlier this year, Minnesota passed a law requiring social media platforms to display a “conspicuous mental health warning label” every time a user logs on. New York’s legislature passed a similar bill in June and sent it to Governor Kathy Hochul’s desk.