You can also use the call tool here:
https://www.stoponlineidchecks.org/MA
I just had a good phone conversation with a staffer at Massachusetts Senator Pat Jehlen's office, and she affirmed that all the advocacy against age verification is being heard. #Massachusetts residents, if you have bandwidth, please keep pushing on this.
You can look up your state senator here: https://malegislature.gov/Search/FindMyLegislator
You can read more here: https://www.fightforthefuture.org/news/2026-04-09-massachusetts-house-advances-unconstitutional-social-media-ban-bill-that-will-harm-lgbtq-youth-and-human-rights/
The Massachusetts House has advanced H. 5349, a draconian and laughably unconstitutional bill that would ban minors from social media, force social media platforms to enable parental surveillance of teenagers’ online activity, and subject everyone to privacy-invading online ID checks in order to access information or speak out online. Dozens of civil liberties, racial justice, […]
The penalties for non-compliance with Massachusetts H5366 are not small either:
"(c) A social media platform violation of section 4 shall be punished by a civil fine of not more than $1,000,000; provided, that each day that a violation of section 4 persists shall be considered a separate violation under this section."
Massachusetts H5366 not only requires that "social media platforms" prohibit use by children under 14 and that "to the extent practicable, the age assurance or verification system shall consist of the best technology available to reasonably and accurately identify a current or prospective user’s age," but also that each social media platform *publicly publish* data on the numbers of users tested and flagged by this age verification technology.
Massachusetts H5366 (https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/H5366), the age verification bill that just passed the House, defines a social media platform as, "a public website, online service, online application or mobile application that displays content primarily generated by users and allows users to create, share and view user-generated content with other users" except for "email, cloud storage, SMS, MMS, RCS" or similar services.
As far as I can tell, this would include #Fedi platforms.
Age verification billls like the Massachusetts House just passed functionally outlaw broad swaths of communication platforms that have been designed to protect user privacy. That's bad in itself, but it also has the side effect of effectively making independent social media platforms like Mastodon illegal.
The counterpart bill by the Massachusetts Senate does not require age verification, but it's not clear what's going to happen now that the two bills have moved to conference committee.
State Representative Erika Uyterhoeven published a little explainer about where things sit.
https://www.electerika.com/newsletters/the-house-took-a-blow-torch-to-your-privacy
For anyone who missed it, last week the Massachusetts House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed "a bill requiring social media companies to implement age verification systems to prohibit users under the age of 14."
https://malegislature.gov/PressRoom/Detail?pressReleaseId=359
This is massively problematic because there aren't really ways of verifying someones age without collecting data on who they are, which means that our legislature would be legally requiring *more* surveillance.
Here's suggested email language to the Somerville Finance Committee, asking them to defer their decision on accepting federal money for police body cameras. Feel free to customize and make your own:
https://cryptpad.fr/doc/#/2/doc/view/mBlTfGi7K2kraupXw4xsJXohfStmoRJ5ayGX6K6N2NQ/
Alexandra Thorn
