Senator Shawn Still Responds to Landmark Meta Settlement

ATLANTA (August 27, 2026) - Senate Majority Caucus Chairman Shawn Still (R-Suwanee) today issued the following statement in response to the announcement of an $18 billion multistate settlement between Meta and 52 attorneys general regarding the impact of social media platforms on children:

"Yesterday's announcement between Meta and 52 attorneys general from across the US and territories to pay $18 billion in a multistate settlement signifies what we have suspected, and now confirm, that social media platforms have addictive aspects that can be harmful to children.

In 2025, I co-chaired the bipartisan Georgia State Senate Study Committee on the Impact of Social Media and Artificial Intelligence on Children and Platform Privacy Protection. Meeting after meeting, speaker after speaker, we heard from parents and experts about how minors are affected. This settlement gives us hope that reform is finally beginning to happen.

It cannot be just Meta, however. Now is the time for all other major platforms to take responsibility and join Meta in their call to action to reform. YouTube, Snapchat, TikTok and others need to commit to the same terms to protect underage users.

The settlement includes over a dozen new controls, such as age-appropriate content restrictions, daily time limit, school mode, parental insights, private accounts and more.

In my four years in the Georgia Senate, children's safety and education have been my top priorities. From the high school cell phone ban to protecting the information of minors in public schools to giving parents a greater voice in their children's education, the bills I have sponsored to become law make our state a safer place for families.

Meta taking responsibility is a great first step. I hope Attorney General Chris Carr and his A.G. peers hold these other platforms accountable, bringing the full force of our states to bear on them, and that the money from this settlement will be used to further protect and help children harmed by the effects of social media."

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Sen. Shawn Still serves as Chair of the Senate Majority Caucus. He represents the 48th Senate District, which includes portions of Fulton, Forsyth, and Gwinnett County. He may be reached by email at [email protected].

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