“The Foundation for Florida’s Future commends the Senate’s passage of House Bill 1, which will provide greater protections for students against the harmful effects of social media on mental health and learning.
“Research has increasingly sounded the alarm on the negative effects that excess screen time and open access to social media platforms are having on adolescents. As an organization that centers students in all that we do, we believe this bill will improve education and academic outcomes.
“Recent data from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) points to a strong correlation between the amount of screen time a student engages with daily and their relative performance in math. Moreover, data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) has shown a national decline in academic performance since 2012, when much of today’s social media ecosystem became mainstream.
“Because of the addictive nature of social media platforms—with infinite scroll technology and few built-in mechanisms or controls to reasonably safeguard students against these harms—it is incumbent upon state legislators to step in.
“And Floridians have made clear they want policymakers to step in. A recent poll suggests nearly 70% of Florida voters support the legislature’s efforts on HB 1. Few public policy issues today enjoy this broad and bipartisan support.
“We thank Senate President Kathleen Passidomo and Sen. Erin Grall for their commitment to this issue. As the bill moves back to the House, we look forward to final action that will send this legislation to Gov. DeSantis.”
