Meta will pay at least $525 million to New Jersey as part of a $17.1 billion settlement that forces safety changes on Instagram and Facebook for minors.
The agreement, reached Wednesday, Aug. 26, ends a landmark addiction trial in Oakland, California. It requires Meta to impose a two-hour daily time limit on combined Instagram and Facebook use for minors, lock teens out of the apps between midnight and 6 a.m., and limit push notifications during school hours on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport called it "the largest state consumer protection settlement in history outside the Big Tobacco Settlements of the 1990s," WHYY reported.
The settlement also restricts beauty filters and visible "like" counts for minors, adds stronger safeguards against bullying and content promoting eating disorders, and gives young users the option of a non-algorithmic feed. Direct messaging is exempt from the overnight lockout, time limits, and school-mode restrictions.
What it means for Cherry Hill families
The platform changes arrive as Cherry Hill Public Schools tightens its own screen-time rules. Beginning with the 2026-2027 school year, a new state law requires all public schools to ban personal internet-enabled devices "bell to bell." Superintendent Dr. Kwame Morton announced in an Aug. 18 letter that the district will implement a full device restriction under Policy 5516, along with a new technology plan that includes screen time usage limits and parameters for artificial intelligence use in classrooms.
School returns Wednesday, Sept. 2.
Cherry Hill had already moved ahead of the state mandate. The district banned wireless devices during instructional periods starting in the 2024-2025 school year. In February, Morton explained the rationale: "For a very long time now teachers have cited concerns around attention and focus and just things that detract from the learning process," he told The Sun Newspapers.
Settlement details
Meta will pay at least $12.1 billion over 10 years to the coalition states. An additional $5 billion kicks in if YouTube and TikTok agree to comparable settlements. A federal judge approved the deal the same day it was announced, according to CBS News.
The settlement resolves claims that Meta deliberately designed addictive features, knowingly exposed children to mental health harms, and misled the public about safety protocols. New Jersey was among 29 states that first sued Meta in 2023.
An independent auditor will monitor Meta's compliance and report findings to the attorneys general. Meta is also barred from making false or misleading statements about its safety features going forward.
Gov. Mikie Sherrill said in a statement that the settlement holds Big Tech accountable for harm to children's mental health and that parents and teens will get relief through the new safety features.
The $17.1 billion amounts to a fraction of Meta's 2025 revenue of $201 billion. California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the platform changes will take effect "within months."
