COLUMBUS, Ohio — A bipartisan bill introduced in the Ohio House would require social media apps and websites to include warning labels if they include features deemed "addictive."
When you start to scroll on social media, it can sometimes be hard to stop.
"Autoplay where you don't even have to interact, you're just staring at it and it; it does its thing," state Rep. Christine Cockley (D-Columbus) said.
It's a cycle that Cockley got trapped in.
"I'm somebody that already has anxiety and depression; there were probably times where it made that worse," she said.
She isn’t the only one. A California jury just awarded a woman millions after she successfully argued that Meta’s Instagram and Facebook platforms and Google's YouTube got her addicted to social media as a child. Dozens of studies from hospitals and universities show that social media can negatively impact mental health.
"Social media was designed and is designed in a way to keep you on social media," said Case Western Reserve University Technology Law Professor Raymond Ku.
Certain features on social media can be addictive, like autoplay, push notifications and like counts, he said. This can be especially damaging for developing brains, Cockley added.
"We can create guard rails," she said.
Cockley and state Rep. Jodi Salvo (R-Bolivar) introduced a bipartisan bill requiring warning labels for websites or apps that include those “addictive” features.
"There's some type of pop-up that says, 'Hey, by the way, this is a platform that might have addictive tendencies,'" Cockley said.
The bill would give the Ohio Department of Behavioral Health the authority to design the warnings.
We reached out to TikTok, YouTube and X, but didn’t hear back. Meta declined to comment.
Ku explained that social media companies will say that they already disclose risks to users when they download.
"In their defense, their best argument is, 'We become 'addicted' to things, because of the convenience they provide, right?'" he said. "And once we have that convenience, there's no way we're going back."
The bill would fine companies $5,000 each time they violate the law. Cockley is debating whether it should be per person or per penalty.
Because the law is written so broadly, Ku said, it could apply to more than just the typical social media sites. This bill could feasibly apply to gaming platforms or gambling sites, which already have their own warning.
Several other states have similar laws, and NetChoice, which represents social media companies, successfully sued Colorado, arguing it violated their First Amendment rights by compelling speech. The state's provision is on pause.
Ohio has struggled to enforce two other internet-related pieces of legislation. In 2024, a judge blocked the state's law requiring parents to sign off on their child's new social media accounts. In 2025, pornography distributors ignored the state's law requiring a state ID in order to watch explicit content.
RELATED: Ohio lawmakers work to plug loophole that porn providers use to skirt age verification requirement
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