Newsom, Demi Lovato sign bill to financially protect child influencers

California Gov. Gavin Newsom made it official: child influencers will now have financial security like other young entertainers. With pop star Demi Lovato by his side, Newsom signed bills AB 1880 – authored by Assemblymember Juan Alanis – and SB 764  – authored by Sen. Steve Padilla – to protect young online creators from financial abuse and keep their earnings safe.

According to the new law, AB 1880 expands the existing protections under the Coogan Law to include child influencers, putting them on par with child actors. Under SB 764, parents or guardians of child vloggers must put a portion of their earnings into trust accounts, providing financial and legal safeguards for minors in online content. 

Newsom stressed the importance of protecting kids from exploitation. “In old Hollywood, child actors were exploited. In 2024, it’s now child influencers. Today, that modern exploitation ends through two new laws to protect young influencers on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and other social media platforms,” he said in a statement.

Demi Lovato also expressed support for the bill.

“In order to build a better future for the next generation of child stars, we need to put protections in place for minors working in the digital space,” she said. 

According to a press release from Alanis’ office, the new law addresses the unique challenges young online content creators face in the rapidly growing digital entertainment sector. He stated, “Child content creators deserve the same protections under the Coogan Law as their counterparts in traditional entertainment. With this bill, California takes a significant step in protecting the financial rights and well-being of child online influencers.”

Senator Steve Padilla echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the need for laws to evolve alongside the entertainment industry to “ensure protections for vulnerable young performers.”

The bill received support from the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director, expressed gratitude for expanding existing protections to cover content creators and influencers, stating, “Regardless of medium or platform, all child performers must be strongly protected.”

This legislation is part of a broader effort by Newsom to protect children in the digital age. Recently, the Governor signed SB 976, which prohibits online platforms from providing addictive feeds to minors without parental consent and restricts social media notifications during school hours and late at night.