Theo Wells-Spackman is a Report for America corps member who reports for VTDigger.
Updated 4:19 p.m.
Vermont has secured $92.7 million and new limits on use for customers under 18 in a settlement with social media giant Meta, state Attorney General Charity Clark said in a press conference Wednesday morning. The sum is the largest single-company settlement in state history, Clark said, and marks a “watershed moment” for social media users across the country.
The settlement, which could reach over $17 billion nationwide, was negotiated in coordination with 51 other states and territories, Clark added. The same consumer protection measures were guaranteed to each party, she said.
Clark sued Meta, which owns social media sites Facebook and Instagram, in 2023, alleging the company intentionally designed its products to cause compulsive use and lied to customers about its platforms’ safety. The suit cited research linking social media use to mental health issues, altered psychological development and eating disorders for teenagers — particularly young women.
The terms announced Wednesday include major changes to how minors can use the company’s platforms, including a block on nighttime use and a daily time limit of two hours, Clark said. Meta is also required to improve its age verification processes to keep kids under 13 from accessing its sites, and to introduce a “school mode” which limits notifications during the regular school day.
“Our priority is to get the harm to stop,” Clark said Wednesday, calling the required changes “incredibly useful.”
Meta is required to make some such changes within weeks, and will likely have several months to address the more technical parts of the deal, according to Assistant Attorney General Justin Kolber. It’s not yet clear what technology will be used to assess age, he said.
“The framework we’ve negotiated will empower parents to easily manage how their children access our platforms,” said C.J. Mahoney, Meta’s chief legal officer, in a statement Wednesday. “As a parent, I’m proud of both the work Meta has done to protect kids historically, and of this new groundbreaking agreement.”
Meta’s lawyers had argued initially that Vermont had no ability to sue the company in Chittenden County Superior Court given the social media company’s limited physical presence in the state and the fact that its products are not aimed at Vermonters in particular. But the Vermont Supreme Court rejected that claim in strong terms last year, and the U.S. Supreme Court declined to weigh in further on the matter earlier this summer.
“Vermont played a very special role in the history of this case,” Clark said of the conflict over jurisdiction.
Clark’s office is currently pursuing related claims against TikTok, Youtube and Snap Inc., the parent company of the platform Snapchat. The structure of Wednesday’s settlement guarantees further payments from Meta if similar terms are met in those negotiations, which could see Vermont’s total payout rise to $127 million, Clark said.
“Because teens move fluidly across dozens of apps, we need an industry-wide solution,” said Mahoney, urging other social media companies to commit to similar protections quickly. Meta’s statement on the matter said the new protections are required to stay in place for a decade, and that some such measures can be disabled with parental permission.
A portion of the funds Clark announced Wednesday — roughly $3.9 million — marks the resolution of separate claims by Vermont against Meta alleging the company illegally sold personal data to third parties, such as now-defunct British consulting firm Cambridge Analytica.
The settlement payments will flow in installments into a special fund controlled by the Vermont Legislature, according to Haley Sommer, an advisor to Clark.
“This is good news for Vermont,” said Amanda Wheeler, spokesperson for Gov. Phil Scott, in a statement Wednesday. “The Governor believe(s) kids were harmed, so it’s important to him that the settlement money received be used for kids,” she said. Scott intends to weigh in with a specific proposal at a later date, she said.
For Clark, Wednesday’s agreement marked a crucial step in regulating online companies to promote safety. The restrictions on accounts for users under 18 will also include limits on “like” counts and beauty filters, as well as stronger safeguards against bullying and other harmful content, according to a statement from her office.
“Vermont’s children will be healthier, and Vermont’s future will be brighter,” Clark said.
