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The race is on. The final day of the 2024 session of the Georgia General Assembly is a little more than a week away, and lawmakers are working to get their bills passed – particularly several education bills.
Two bills – both by state Sen. Jason Anavitarte, R-Dallas, – made it through the House Education Committee Monday and are now in Rules to be scheduled for a full vote.
SB 351, the “Protecting Georgia’s Children on Social Media Act,” would require local school boards to create social media policies prohibiting students from accessing social media through school-owned devices or internet services. Under this legislation, the policies would be reviewed by the State Board of Education – who may withhold funding from non-compliant schools and districts. Local boards must also expand their policies on bullying to include provisions for cyberbullying.
According to Anavitarte, the bill requires social media companies to verify user ages and prevent minors from holding social media accounts without parental consent. The current version of SB 351 now includes language from HB 910 by Rep. Rick Jasperse, R-Jasper, which requires identity and age verification to access pornographic websites.
SB 351 is on the priority list for Lt. Gov. Burt Jones. “I will never apologize in the fight to protect Georgia’s youth. Social media can be a very useful tool, however there are instances in which we must reign in Big Tech in order to protect the health and safety of our children,” said Jones after the bill passed the Senate.
SB 32 or “Alyssa’s Law,” also by Anavitarte, requires school districts to implement a mobile panic alert system capable of connecting in real-time to local law enforcement. The bill was updated to allow for technology already used by the Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA) in school…
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