Hamburg, N.Y. (WBEN) - After enacting efforts to protect children from social media threats and banning smartphones in schools last year, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is building and expanding her goal of creating safeguards for kids online and tackling youth mental health.
Gov. Hochul was in Western New York on Monday, making a stop at Hamburg High School to unveil her first State of the State proposals. This included new legislation that will help protect children from online predators, scammers and harmful AI chatbots integrated on online platforms.
Additionally, the governor is proposing a first-of-its-kind, statewide expansion of Teen Mental Health First Aid training, designed to give young people the tools to identify, understand, and effectively respond to signs of mental health and substance abuse challenges among their friends and peers.
"As New York’s first mom governor, the well-being and safety of our children has always been one of my top priorities, and today we are continuing to break new ground to give our kids the tools and safeguards they need to contend with the unprecedented mental health challenges and real world dangers that can sometimes be a byproduct of navigating today’s digital world," said Gov. Hochul on Monday. "These proposals will create a nation-leading standard that will ensure our kids’ safety in online and real world environments where they spend time."
Numerous lawsuits and investigations have alleged that online platforms have not taken appropriate steps to protect children that use them. These online platforms allow children and adults to contact each other worldwide, leaving children susceptible to grooming, child abuse, and exposure to violent and inappropriate content, including suicide.
The governor’s proposed legislative package to keep kids safe from emerging threats on social media and online gaming platforms will include:
- Expanding Age Verification: Expanding requirements for platforms to conduct age verification, including online game platforms.
- Privacy by Default: Kids will be set to the highest privacy settings on covered platforms by default, meaning non-connections cannot message kids, view their profile, or tag them in content. Location settings will be turned off by default, and children under 13 must receive parental approval for new connections.
- Disabling AI Chatbot Features: Disabling certain AI chatbot features on social media platforms for kids.
- Parental Controls: Parents must be able to set limits on children’s financial transactions.
This package draws on existing legislation sponsored by State Sen. Andrew Gounardes and State Assemblymember Nily Rozic.
When teens experience mental health and substance use challenges, often their first resort is to talk to their peers. Likewise, friends are often best positioned to identify and empathize with stressors that may be acting on fellow students. Research demonstrates that with training, young people have the capacity to both identify and effectively respond to mental health challenges in ways that can improve and even save lives.
This training is designed for young people between the ages 15 and 18 so they can identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental health and substance use challenges in their friends and peers. It equips them with skills to:
- Recognize common signs and symptoms of mental health and substance use challenges;
- The impact of bullying and school violence on mental health;
- How to have impactful conversations with classmates about mental health concerns or to seek help from an adult;
- Formal and informal support and self-care.
As part of this initiative, New York State will also offer new Youth Mental Health First Aid training for adults who regularly interact with youth in schools and community programs. This nationally-recognized curriculum introduces common mental health challenges for youth, reviews typical adolescent development, and teaches a five-step action plan for how to help young people in both crisis and non-crisis situations.