The new laws expand on the state’s Coogan Law, signed in 1938, which requires that 15 percent of all minors’ earnings from the entertainment industry be set aside in a blocked trust account. The money is made available to the children when they turn 18.
The new measures include minors who make money on social media, and set out guidelines for content creators.
“A lot has changed since Hollywood’s early days, but here in California, our laser focus on protecting kids from exploitation remains the same,” Newsom said in a press release. “In old Hollywood, child actors were exploited. In 2024, it’s now child influencers.”
Former Disney star, singer, and activist Demi Lovato attended the signings after championing the legislation this year.
“This is essentially the Coogan Law for the digital age,” Lovato said in a video with the governor.
The law extending Coogan’s Law to include parents of minors performing online was Assembly Bill 1880, written by Republican Assemblyman Juan Alanis.
“Financial exploitation is a serious issue for children who create content online, and it is our duty to ensure they are not only physically safe but also protected from potential financial harm,” Alanis said in a statement Thursday.
The Coogan Law was named after famous child actor Jackie Coogan, who was discovered in 1919 by Charlie Chaplin. When Coogan turned 21, he realized he was left without any of the money he had earned as a child. California law, at the time, allowed parents to keep the minor’s earnings.
Newsom also signed Senate Bill 764, the Child Content Creator Rights Act, which was authored by Sen. Steve Padilla, a Democrat who represents San Diego and southern border towns. It provides financial and legal protections for minors who are featured in monetized online content.“California has a long legacy of protecting child performers from financial abuse,” Padilla said in a press release Thursday. “It is critical we adapt these landmark protections to keep up with the natural evolution of entertainment.”
The bill requires creators who feature minors in at least 30 percent of their content to put 65 percent of gross earnings into a trust account that the minors can access when they reach 18.
The measure includes some stipulations. The content must make more than 10 cents per view, and the creator must receive at least $1,250 during the month.
Padilla’s bill was modeled after a bill passed in Illinois in August 2023. The Illinois bill was the first of its kind in the U.S. to ensure children were compensated for social media content.
Former child actor Lovato stars in “Child Star,” a movie that debuted Sept. 17 on Hulu. The film, Lovato’s first as a director, highlights former child stars through interviews and archived footage, and explores the entertainment industry through the last century.In 2021, Lovato shared her story as a child actor in the late 2000s. Lovato said she was sexually assaulted as a teenager while working as an actor, but did not say who the offender was. The comments were made in Lovato’s YouTube docuseries “Demi Lovato: Dancing with the Devil.” She has also been open about her struggles with drug and alcohol addiction and an eating disorder.
In a social media statement Thursday, Lovato said she was grateful for Newsom’s action to ensure children featured on social media are properly compensated.
“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 wrote on Facebook.
She also thanked her partners working on the “Child Star” film.
The new laws signed Thursday will go into effect Jan. 1, 2025.
