Louisiana HB 37: CONTRACTS: Establishes a duty of care for online platforms who contract with minors

Bill Text

ENROLLED
ACT No. 236
2025 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 37
BY REPRESENTATIVES SCHLEGEL, BACALA, BAYHAM, BERAULT, BILLINGS,
BOYER, BUTLER, CARVER, CHENEVERT, COATES, COX, DESHOTEL,
DEVILLIER, ECHOLS, EDMONSTON, EGAN, EMERSON, FIRMENT,
FREIBERG, GLORIOSO, HORTON, MIKE JOHNSON, LAFLEUR, JACOB
LANDRY, LARVADAIN, LYONS, MOORE, OWEN, RISER, ROMERO, SPELL,
TAYLOR, TURNER, VILLIO, WILDER, WYBLE, AND ZERINGUE AND
SENATORS BARROW, BOUDREAUX, CLOUD, HENRY, AND MIZELL
1 AN ACT
2 To enact R.S. 9:2717.4, relative to the duty of care when contracting with minors; to
3 establish a duty of care for a covered platform; to provide for definitions; to provide
4 for exceptions; to provide limitations on how adults interact with minors on covered
5 platforms; to provide for penalties; to provide for an effective date; and to provide
6 for related matters.
7 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
8 Section 1. R.S. 9:2717.4 is hereby enacted to read as follows:
9 §2717.4. Kids Online Protection and Anti-Grooming Act
10 A. This Section shall be known and may be cited as the "Kids Online
11 Protection and Anti-Grooming Act".
12 B. For purposes of this Section:
13 (1) "Connect" means the linking, associating, or interacting of user accounts
14 between an adult and a minor on a covered platform, including but not limited to
15 subscribing or friending.
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CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
are additions.

HB NO. 37 ENROLLED
1 (2)(a) "Covered platform" means an online platform, online video game,
2 messaging application, or video streaming service that accesses the internet and is
3 used by a minor.
4 (b) "Covered platform" shall not include any of the following:
5 (i) An entity acting in its capacity as a provider of a common carrier service
6 subject to the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 151 et seq.).
7 (ii) An entity providing broadband internet access service as defined in 47
8 C.F.R. 54.400.
9 (iii) An entity acting in its capacity as a provider of an email service.
10 (iv) An entity acting in its capacity as a teleconferencing or video
11 conferencing service that allows reception and transmission of audio or video signals
12 for real-time communication provided that the service is not an online platform and
13 the real-time communication is initiated by using a unique link or identifier to
14 facilitate access.
15 (v) An entity acting in its capacity as a wireless messaging service, including
16 such a service provided through short messaging service or multimedia messaging
17 service protocols that is not a component of or linked to an online platform and
18 where the exclusive function is direct messaging consisting of the transmission of
19 texts, photos, or videos that are sent by electronic means, where messages are
20 transmitted from the sender to a recipient.
21 (vi) A nonprofit corporation.
22 (vii) Any school.
23 (viii) A public library.
24 (ix) A news or sports coverage website or application where the inclusion
25 of video, image, or other visual content on the website or application is related
26 primarily to the website or application's own gathering, reporting, or publishing of
27 news content or sports coverage and the website or application is not otherwise an
28 online platform.
29 (x) A product or service that primarily functions as business-to-business
30 software, such as cloud storage, file sharing, or a file collaboration service.
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CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
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HB NO. 37 ENROLLED
1 (xi) A virtual private network or similar service that exists predominantly to
2 route internet traffic between locations.
3 (xii) A federal, state, or local government with an internet domain.
4 (xiii) A video streaming service that consists primarily of entertainment or
5 other information or content that is not user-generated or user-uploaded, but is
6 preselected by the provider, and either requires users to register with a method of
7 payment or does not permit users to interact socially with each other.
8 (xiv) Platforms that primarily provide career networking and professional
9 development opportunities.
10 (3) "Minor" means an account holder on the covered platform who resides
11 in this state under circumstances where the covered platform reasonably believes or
12 has actual knowledge that the account holder is under the age of sixteen and is not
13 emancipated or married.
14 (4)(a) "Online platform" means any public website, online service, online
15 application, or mobile application that predominantly provides a community forum
16 for user-generated content, such as sharing videos, images, games, audio files, or
17 other content, including a social media service, social network, or virtual reality
18 environment.
19 (b) A website, online service, online application, or mobile application is not
20 an online platform solely on the basis that it includes a c