FOSI Briefs the States: Engaging Florida on the Future of Online Safety Policy

Florida has emerged as an ambitious state for online safety legislation. Over the past few years, the Sunshine State has worked to implement a comprehensive approach to protecting children online: requiring digital media literacy education in schools, restricting social media access for children under 14, mandating parental consent for 14-15 year olds, and banning cellphones in classrooms. Now, as Florida grapples with the next frontier, whether or not to implement the state’s AI Bill of Rights (SB 482) and age assurance requirements across technologies, the FOSI team, represented by our Policy Director, Andrew Zack, and State Policy Lead, Marissa Edmund, brought their expertise directly to Tallahassee.

In this piece, we break down the key debates shaping Florida’s approach to AI and age assurance, and what they signal for the future of child online safety policy nationwide.

Motunrayo Fatoke (Mo) 

Motunrayo Fatoke (Mo) is a Policy Intern at the Family Online Safety Institute (FOSI), supporting the Policy team’s work to advance child-centered online safety and digital wellbeing. Her work focuses on researching and tracking online safety legislation, supporting policy analysis, and contributing to stakeholder engagement that informs evidence-based solutions for protecting children online.

Marissa Edmund

Marissa Edmund is the State Policy Lead at the Family Online Safety Institute (FOSI), working with the policy team to monitor emerging issues in tech policy and contribute her policy and research expertise to ensure the online world is safer for children and families.