{"id":205000,"date":"2026-04-21T18:30:11","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T18:30:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/205000\/"},"modified":"2026-04-21T18:30:11","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T18:30:11","slug":"nyc-council-debates-limiting-social-media-time-for-young-people-amid-mental-health-concerns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/205000\/","title":{"rendered":"NYC Council debates limiting social media time for young people amid mental health concerns"},"content":{"rendered":"

The New York City Council is debating legislation that would set time limits on young people\u2019s social media use as concerns grow over its effects on mental health<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Councilwoman Althea Stevens (D-Bronx), chairperson of the Committee on Children and Youth, is pressing the measure, which would prohibit social media companies from allowing young people on their platforms for more than one hour per day<\/a>, unless waived by a parent or guardian. A hearing was held Tuesday afternoon.<\/p>\n

The bill, which has seven co-sponsors, would also ban the companies from promoting targeted advertisements or content to minors.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis legislation here today is not the final answer,\u201d Stevens said during a news conference on the City Hall steps. \u201cIt is a starting point. It is about bringing real, honest conversations about how we create a balance, accountability and protection for our youth in this digital age.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are exploring steps like limiting daily [social] media use, restricting targeted ads to minors, and requiring deeper reporting on mental health impacts from these platforms,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

\"NewNew York City Councilwoman Althea Stevens speaks during a rally in Foley Square, Manhattan, on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024. (Shawn Inglima for New York Daily News)<\/p>\n

A\u00a02024 report<\/a> from the city\u2019s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene found that teens who use social media self-report higher rates of anxiety and depression, as well as other adverse experiences online, such as cyberbullying or social pressure.<\/p>\n

The city has tried to reverse those trends by launching free online therapy for teens<\/a> and offering school-based mental health services<\/a>. A media advisory for the hearing said Council members would \u201cexamine the effectiveness\u201d of those programs and others.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe impacts of social media on our youth have gotten completely out of hand,\u201d Council Speaker Julie Menin said at the news conference. \u201cIt\u2019s absolutely not regulated, and it\u2019s already demonstrated to have a detrimental impact on both the physical and the mental health of young people.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not asking for a major change. We\u2019re literally asking for common-sense policies that will protect our youth from this mental health crisis.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"(Shutterstock)\"The New York City Council is debating legislation that would set time limits on young people’s social media use as concerns grow over its effects on mental health. (Shutterstock)<\/p>\n

Menin, who is not a co-sponsor of Stevens\u2019s bill, said Tuesday\u2019s hearing was part of an \u201citerative process,\u201d which will include feedback from young people, parents and tech companies on the legislation.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a beginning of a conversation,\u201d Menin said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The New York City Council is debating legislation that would set time limits on young people\u2019s social media…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":205001,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[85,267,9,24,264,10,12,56,63,65,64],"class_list":{"0":"post-205000","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-city","8":"tag-latest-headlines","9":"tag-local-news","10":"tag-new-york","11":"tag-new-york-city","12":"tag-new-york-county","13":"tag-new-york-news","14":"tag-news","15":"tag-ny","16":"tag-nyc","17":"tag-nyc-headlines","18":"tag-nyc-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205000","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=205000"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205000\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/205001"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=205000"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=205000"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=205000"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}