Bill to Law?

Team Effort: Representative Susan Valdés (center) and bill authors Genesis Salcedo Lima, 17; Sevion Daniels, 18; Kamilah Collazo, 18; and Laraina Fernandez, 17.

But those fears seemed to melt away as the classmates stepped up to the lectern and addressed the panel of lawmakers.

Laraina and her classmate Genesis Salcedo Lima, 17, visited the state capitol in late March to address the Careers and Workforce Subcommittee on behalf of their bill.

By a unanimous vote, the subcommittee approved their bill.

Committees and subcommittees conduct hearings and gather more information about bills, then they decide whether those bills should be scrapped, changed, or moved along for more House members to consider.

The bill was enacted in 2024, though it is still facing legal challenges from tech companies.

Valdés filed an amendment to HB 1255.

“That was a way of compromising,” Valdés explains, “of being able to get their voices heard.”

“These are all incredibly important skills one needs to attain,” she said.

Teenagers testified before the state legislature to champion California’s Senate Bill 976, designed to prevent social media platforms from knowingly providing an addictive feed to minors without parental consent.