- with Inhouse Counsel
Many US states have attempted to enact laws similar to the UK’s Age-Appropriate Design Code. Nebraska is among them, and is set to take effect -unless challenged- on July 17, 2026. The law was initially passed in May 2025, with enforcement by the attorney general not intended to begin until July 1, 2026. The law has now been revised. The modifications are set to take effect on July 17, 2026.
As revised, the law will apply to companies who, among other factors, generate the majority of their annual revenue from online services and process personal information of more than 50,000 consumers. The law would previously only have applied to companies that -in addition to the number threshold- both (1) bought, received, sold or shared personal data and (2) earned 50 percent of their yearly revenue from selling or sharing consumers’ personal data.
The law, like other design code laws, will have prohibitions on how online features can work. These include giving children an easy mechanism to turn off things like infinite scroll and rewards for frequent visits or time online. Also included was letting children turn off in-game purchases and appearance changing filters. Now, the law will also require giving children the ability to control autoplay video or audio. And, turning off engagement counters (likes or views) and game-style features (including badges or rewards). Also included are features that pretend to “talk like a human” to build feelings of closeness or intimacy. The law has not changed its obligation that parents be given the ability to view and manage their child’s account settings.
The amendment also widened how the rules apply across a product. Before, some requirements were going to be linked only to certain covered features. Now, the law will apply key requirements to the online service as a whole. These include banning a single setting that makes all default privacy settings less protective. The law also limits prompts that push minors to lower privacy settings unless the service truly needs that change to work. Finally, the law requires a clear and easy tool that lets a minor ask the service to unpublish or delete an account.
We anticipate that this law will face legal challenges similar to those filed against comparable laws in California, Maryland, and South Carolina. Another area to watch in the kids’ space in Nebraska? The social media law it passed last year.
Putting it into Practice: Although we anticipate this law will face challenges before its effective date later this summer, it is a reminder of the power of a flexible and principles-based approach to address the ongoing privacy patchwork. One area to focus on now might be the type of consumer controls you have built into your online services.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
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