California Governor Gavin Newsom recently signed two bills in Los Angeles. The bills alter how minors use social media and expand financial protections for child performers to include social media influencers and content creators. 

Assembly Bill 1880, introduced by Assemblymember Juan Alanis, extends California’s Coogan Law to cover minors in income-generating online content. The Coogan Law, established in 1939, requires 15% of a child performer’s earnings to be saved in a protected trust accessible upon reaching adulthood.

Complementing this, Senate Bill 764, introduced by Senator Steve Padilla, targets online influencers who feature children in at least 30% of their content. 

The bill mandates that a portion of gross earnings be set aside in a trust for the minor. Additionally, creators must maintain records of income generated from content featuring children and document the duration of minors’ appearances.

Former Disney Channel star Demi Lovato, who recently released a Hulu documentary titled “Child Star,” joined Newsom for the bill signing. In a video posted to the California Governor’s X account, Lovato describes the new laws as “essentially the Coogan Law for the digital age.”

California is taking a stand with @DDLovato to protect child influencers on social media.

Under new state labor laws, child creators on all platforms will now get a trust fund for their earnings that are accessible when they turn 18. pic.twitter.com/ezTGbYIChz

— California Governor (@CAgovernor) September 26, 2024

Newsom highlighted the legislation’s role in closing a “glaring gap” created by the entertainment industry’s evolution into online and social media content creation. 

The new laws follow Illinois’ pioneering legislation, which took effect on July 1, requiring influencers to save a percentage of gross compensation from content featuring children under 16.

Moreover, drawing inspiration from the Illinois law, New Jersey recently passed legislation mandating parental consent for minors featured in compensated video blogs. 

However, the New Jersey version proposed that vlogs be deemed engaging a minor in employment if the child under 16 appears in at least 30% of the content over 30 days and the videos meet viewership levels that trigger advertising revenue.

These laws come amid growing awareness of financial exploitation issues in child entertainment. 

The recent Hulu documentary “Child Star” features activist Chris McCarty of Quit Clicking Kids, an organization advocating for child performer compensation and privacy rights. McCarty and Lovato have been vocal supporters of legislation protecting child performers in California.