NY State Senate Bill 2025-S5476

Senate Bill S5476

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Establishes a statewide youth mental health and social media campaign to promote public awareness of the impacts of social media usage on mental health

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Health Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Feb 21, 2025	referred to health

2025-S5476 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Health
Law Section:: Public Health Law
Laws Affected:: Add Art 25 Title 7-A §2596, Pub Health L; add §805, Ed L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:: S7662

2025-S5476 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Establishes a statewide youth mental health and social media campaign to promote public awareness of the impacts of social media usage on mental health; requires a course of study on social media usage for all students.

2025-S5476 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S5476

SPONSOR: COMRIE
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public health law and the education law, in relation
to establishing a statewide youth mental health and social media
campaign to promote public awareness of the impacts of social media
usage on mental health

 
PURPOSE:

The purpose of this bill is to create a public education campaign and
accompanying school curriculum to inform the public, students, and
educators about the negative impacts of social media on the mental
health of young people.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of this bill would require the Commissioner of Health, in
conjunction with the Commissioner of Education, Commissioner of Mental
Health, and Director of the Office of Information Technology Services,

to establish a statewide youth mental health and social media campaign,
including the promotion of public awareness of existing research and
statistics regarding youth mental health and social media use, increased
awareness of and access to youth mental health resources, and promotion
of healthy behaviors related to young people's use of social media.

Section 2 of this bill would require the regents to provide instruction
to students in grades K-12 regarding social media use behaviors and its
impact on mental health, and require school districts to provide their
teachers with curriculum materials which will vary based on the ages,
needs, and abilities of the students they are intended for.

Section 3 of this bill provides that the effective date shall take
effect on the first of July next succeeding the date on which it shall
have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or
repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of
this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed
on or before such effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

A 2018 report by the Pew Research Center demonstrates that approximately
950 of teens in the U.S. have access to a smartphone, and 450 of those
teens say they are online almost constantly. A 2019 study from Johns
Hopkins University observed that the longer teens spent using social
media per day, the greater risk they had of reporting mental health
struggles. With almost half of teens across the nation constantly on
their smartphones, it is no wonder that youth mental health problems
have increased by over 40% in the past decade. Recent research affirms
this conclusion, continually showing that the overwhelming presence of
this technology correlates with increased feelings of isolation and
anxiety, poor sleep quality, and cyberbullying.

However, these same studies also demonstrate that when teens exercise
healthy behaviors with smartphones and social media those actions are
correlated with feelings of connection and self-expression. Young people

may be susceptible to increased risks of mental health struggles without
proper awareness of the risks of excessive use of social media.

Sadly, improper social media use can have devastating consequences. In
the worst-case scenarios, exposing young people to hateful ideologies
that promote extremism and violence leads to violence. A recent report
by the State Attorney General details how the Buffalo Shooter, who
murdered ten Black New Yorkers and injured three others in a Tops
grocery store, was deeply influenced by content on social media plat-
forms that perpetuated white supremacy and antisemitism. There are many
factors that need to be addressed regarding racist acts of violence such
as this horrific example in Buffalo on May 14, 2022; however, parents
and educators can play an important role in combating the perpetuation
of hateful and violent rhetoric online by promoting healthy and safe
ways to navigate social media and establishing open conversations with
young people about how their mental health may be impacted by what they
view on social media.

A statewide public awareness campaign about the risks of unhealthy use
of social media among young people is crucial for educating the public
on a significant factor in our country's mental health crisis.  Parents
and educators must be equipped with knowledge about the risks of social
media so that they can encourage healthy behaviors among young people
and protect them against increased risks of mental health problems.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2024: S7662

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding the date
on which it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addi-
tion, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for
the implementation of this act on its effective date are authorized to
be made and completed on or before such effective date.

2025-S5476 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5476
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 21, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  COMRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Health
 
 AN ACT to amend the public health law and the education law, in relation
   to establishing a statewide  youth  mental  health  and  social  media
   campaign  to  promote  public awareness of the impacts of social media
   usage on mental health
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. Article 25 of the public health law is amended by adding a
 new title 7-A to read as follows:
 
                                TITLE VII-A
                               SOCIAL MEDIA
 
 SECTION 2596. STATEWIDE YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH AND SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN.
   § 2596. STATEWIDE YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH AND SOCIAL  MEDIA  CAMPAIGN.  1.
 THE COMMISSIONER, IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION, THE
 COMMISSIONER  OF MENTAL HEALTH, AND THE DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF INFOR-
 MATION TECHNOLOGY SERVICES, SHALL ESTABLISH  A  STATEWIDE  YOUTH  MENTAL
 HEALTH  AND  SOCIAL  MEDIA  CAMPAIGN  TO PROMOTE PUBLIC AWARENESS OF THE
 IMPACTS OF SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE ON MENTAL HEALTH. SUCH  PROGRAM  SHALL  BE
 DIRECTED AT CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULTS, THEIR PARENTS, AND EDUCATORS.
   2. SUCH PROGRAM SHALL INCLUDE, BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO:
   A.  EDUCATING  PEOPLE ON THE NEGATIVE IMPACTS SOCIAL MEDIA CAN HAVE ON
 YOUNG PEOPLE'S MENTAL HEALTH;
   B. PROMOTING PUBLIC AWARENESS  OF  EXISTING  RESEARCH  AND  STATISTICS
 REGARDING YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH AND SOCIAL MEDIA USE;
   C.  EDUCATING PEOPLE ON TECHNIQUES TO REDUCE FEELINGS OF ISOLATION AND
 ANXIETY, INCREASE SLEEP QUALITY, AND REDUCE THE EFFECTS ON MENTAL HEALTH
 CAUSED BY CYBERBULLYING;

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD09694-01-5
 S. 5476                             2

 
   D. PROMOTING HEALTHY BEHAVIORS RELATED TO YOUNG PEOPLE'S USE OF SOCIAL
 MEDIA;
   E.   INCREASING  AWARENESS  OF  AND  ACCESS  TO  YOUTH  MENTAL  HEALTH
 RESOURCES; AND
   F. PROMOTING ALTERNATIVE METHODS OF SELF-EXPRESSION.
   3. ON OR BEFORE JULY FIRST OF EACH YEAR, THE COMMISSIONER, IN CONJUNC-
 TION WITH THE COMMISSIONER OF  EDUCATION,  THE  COMMISSIONER  OF  MENTAL
 HEALTH,  AND  THE  DIRECTOR  OF  THE  OFFICE  OF  INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
 SERVICES, SHALL SUBMIT A REPORT TO THE  GOVERNOR,  THE  SPEAKER  OF  THE
 ASSEMBLY, AND THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE ON THE EFFECTIVENESS
 OF  THE  STATEWIDE  YOUTH  MENTAL  HEALTH  AND SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN AND
 RECOMMENDATIONS ON CHANGES WHICH SHOULD BE MADE TO ANY LAWS,  RULES,  OR
 REGULATIONS RELATING THERETO.
   §  2. The education law is amended by adding a new section 805 to read
 as follows:
   § 805. COURSES OF STUDY ON SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE. 1.  THE  REGENTS  SHALL
 ENSURE  THAT  THE  COURSE  OF INSTRUCTION IN GRADES KINDERGARTEN THROUGH
 TWELVE INCLUDES A COMPONENT ON SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE. SUCH COMPONENT  SHALL
 INSTRUCT STUDENTS ON:
   (A) THE NEGATIVE IMPACTS SOCIAL MEDIA CAN HAVE ON MENTAL HEALTH;
   (B)  RESEARCH  AND STATISTICS REGARDING YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH AND SOCIAL
 MEDIA USE;
   (C) TECHNIQUES TO REDUCE FEELINGS OF ISOLATION AND  ANXIETY,  INCREASE
 SLEEP  QUALITY, AND REDUCE THE EFFECTS ON MENTAL HEALTH CAUSED BY CYBER-
 BULLYING;
   (D) HEALTHY SOCIAL MEDIA USE BEHAVIORS;
   (E) MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES AVAILABLE TO STUDENTS; AND
   (F) METHODS OF SELF-EXPRESSION OTHER THAN SOCIAL MEDIA.
   2. THE COMMISSIONER, IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE COMMISSIONER  OF  HEALTH,
 THE  COMMISSIONER  OF  MENTAL  HEALTH, AND THE DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF
 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SERVICES, SHALL PROVIDE TECHNICAL  ASSISTANCE  TO
 ASSIST  IN  THE DEVELOPMENT OF CURRICULA FOR SUCH COURSES OF STUDY WHICH
 SHALL BE AGE APPROPRIATE AND DEVELOPED ACCORDING TO THE NEEDS AND ABILI-
 TIES OF PUPILS AT SUCCESSIVE GRADE LEVELS.
   3. THE BOARD OF EDUCATION OR TRUSTEES OF EVERY SCHOOL  DISTRICT  SHALL
 PROVIDE  APPROPRIATE  TRAINING  AND CURRICULUM MATERIALS FOR THE REGULAR
 TEACHERS WHO PROVIDE SUCH INSTRUCTION.
   § 3. This act shall take effect on the first of July  next  succeeding
 the date on which it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the
 addition,  amendment  and/or  repeal of any rule or regulation necessary
 for the implementation of this act on its effective date are  authorized
 to be made and completed on or before such effective date.

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