Vermont Lands $92.7 Million Meta Deal With New Teen Safety Rules

Clark filed suit against Meta in 2023, accusing the company of building its platforms to encourage compulsive use and misleading the public about safety.

Vermont has reached a $92.7 million settlement with Meta that will also force new limits on how teenagers use Facebook and Instagram, Attorney General Charity Clark said Wednesday morning. Clark described the agreement as the largest single-company recovery in state history and said it represents a major turning point for efforts to rein in social media harms.

The deal was negotiated alongside 51 other states and territories and could ultimately total more than $17 billion nationwide. Vermont’s share may increase to $127 million if other related cases produce similar terms, Clark said.

The settlement requires Meta to add several safeguards for users under 18. Those changes include a nighttime access restriction, a two-hour daily cap, stronger age checks intended to keep children under 13 off the platforms, and a school mode that cuts down notifications during the school day. The company must also tighten protections against bullying and harmful content, while limiting like counts and beauty filters for younger users. Some changes will need to be in place within weeks, while more technical requirements may take months, according to Assistant Attorney General Justin Kolber.

Clark filed suit against Meta in 2023, accusing the company of building its platforms to encourage compulsive use and misleading the public about safety. The case relied in part on research connecting heavy social media use with mental health concerns, changes in psychological development, and eating disorders among teenagers, especially young women.

A separate portion of the settlement, about $3.9 million, resolves Vermont claims that Meta unlawfully shared personal data with third parties, including the now-defunct British consulting firm Cambridge Analytica.

Meta’s lawyers had argued that Vermont could not bring the case in Chittenden County Superior Court because the company has a limited physical presence in the state and does not specifically target Vermonters. The Vermont Supreme Court rejected that argument last year, and the U.S. Supreme Court declined to intervene later this summer.

The payments will be sent in installments to a special fund overseen by the Vermont Legislature, Haley Sommer, an advisor to Clark, said. Gov. Phil Scott’s office said the administration believes the settlement money should be directed toward children, and that Scott plans to offer a more detailed proposal later.

Meta said in a statement that the agreement is designed to help parents manage how their children use the company’s platforms. The company also said the protections will remain in place for 10 years, though some measures can be turned off with parental approval.

Clark’s office is still pursuing similar actions against TikTok, Youtube and Snap Inc., the company behind Snapchat. Clark said Vermont’s role in the legal fight over jurisdiction was unusually important.

According to Clark, the goal of the agreement is to stop the harm and create rules that make social media safer for young users. She said the outcome should improve the well-being of Vermont children and strengthen the state’s future.