HB 706 — Modifies provisions of child labor laws and provides additional employment requirements for children engaged in online content creation or vlogging

Bill Text

Compared against the Missouri Revised Statutes as published AI-generated reading aid — verify against the official bill.

This bill amends 3 section(s) of the Missouri Revised Statutes: Section 294.011, RSMo; Section 294.035, RSMo; Section 294.036, RSMo.

• Section 294.011, RSMo

  bold-face "Family", a group of persons related by blood or marriage, including civil partnerships, or whose close relationship with each other is considered equivalent to a family relationship by the individuals; (9) "Online platform", any public-facing website, web application, or digital application, including a mobile application. "Online platform" includes a social network, advertising network, mobile operating system, search engine, email service, or internet access service; (10) ; (11"Vlog", content shared on an online platform in exchange for compensation; (12) "Vlogger", an individual or family that creates video content performed in Missouri in exchange for compensation and includes any proprietorship, partnership, company, or other corporate entity assuming the name or identity of a particular individual or family for the purposes of that content creation. "Vlogger" does not include any person under sixteen years of age who produces his or her own vlogs

  amended

• Section 294.035, RSMo

  of vlogging when the following criteria are met at any time during the previous twelve- month period: (1) At least thirty percent of the vlogger's compensated video content produced within a thirty-day period included the likeness, name, or photograph of the child. Content percentage is measured by the percentage of time the likeness, name, or photograph of the child visually appears or is the subject of an oral narrative in a video segment as compared to the total length of the segment; and (2) The number of views received per video segment on any online platform met the online platform's threshold for the generation of compensation or the vlogger received actual compensation for video content equal to or greater than ten cents per view. 2. Upon reaching the age of majority, any individual who was a child engaged in the work of vlogging as described in subsection 1 may request the permanent deletion of any video segment or content including the likeness, name, or photograph of the individual from any online platform that provided compensation to a vlogger in exchange for video content that featured the child engaged in the work of vlogging. An online platform shall take all reasonable steps to permanently delete the video segment or content after it receives the request from an individual described in this subsection. 3. With the exception of sections 294.011 and 294.036, the provisions of this chapter do not apply to a minor engaged in the work of vlogging. 4. All vloggers whose content features a child under sixteen years of age engaged in the work of vlogging shall maintain the following records and shall provide them to the child on an ongoing basis: (1) The name and documentary proof of the age of each child engaged in the work of vlogging; (The number of vlogs that generated compensation as described under subsection 1 of this section during the reporting period; (The total number of minutes of the vlogs that the vlogger received compensation for during the reporting period; (4) The total number of minutes each child was featured in vlogs during the reporting period; (5) The total compensation generated from vlogs featuring a child during the reporting period; and (6) The amount deposited into the trust account for the benefit of each child engaged in the work of vlogging, as required by section 294.036. 5. If a vlogger whose vlog content features a child under sixteen years of age engaged in the work of vlogging fails to maintain the records described under subsection 4 of this section, the child may commence a civil action to enforce the provisions of this

  amended

• Section 294.036, RSMo

  294.035 shall be compensated by the vlogger. The vlogger shall set aside gross earnings on the video content including the likeness, name, or photograph of the child in a trust account to be preserved for the benefit of the child upon reaching the age of majority, according to the following distribution: (1) Where only one child meets the content threshold described under section 294.035, the percentage of total gross earnings on any video segment including the likeness, name, or photograph of the child that is equal to or greater than half of the content percentage that includes the child as described under section 294.035; or (2) Where more than one child meets the content threshold described in section 294.035 and a video segment includes more than one of those children, the percentage described under subdivision (1) of this subsection for all children in any segment shall be equally divided between the children, regardless of differences in percentage of content that includes the individual children. 2. A trust account required under this section shall provide, at a minimum, the following: (1) That the funds in the account shall be available only to the child or children engaged in the work of vlogging; (2) (a) That the account shall be held by a bank or trust company, as such terms are defined under section 362.332 or a corporate fiduciary, as such term is defined under this subdivision; (b) A "corporate fiduciary" is defined as a trust company; the trust department of a bank, savings bank, savings and loan association, or foreign banking corporation authorized to conduct business under Missouri laws; or any person that is required to and has received a certificate of authority under chapter 362 authorizing the exercise of trust powers. The term "corporate fiduciary" also includes a national bank or federally chartered savings and loan association or savings bank that is authorized by the appropriate federal agency to accept and execute trusts and that has its principal place of business in this state, whenever such construction is necessary so that the national bank or federally chartered savings and loan association or savings bank may enjoy and exercise in this state all of the powers, rights, and privileges authorized or permitted to a corporate fiduciary; (3) That the funds in the account shall become available to the child or children engaged in the work of vlogging upon such child or children attaining eighteen years of age or when the child is or children are declared emancipated; and (4) That the account meets the requirements of the Missouri transfers to minors law under sections 404.005 to 404.094. 3. If a vlogger knowingly or recklessly violates this section, a child satisfying the criteria described in subsection 1 of section 294.035 may commence an action to enforce the provisions of this section regarding the trust account. The court may award, to a child who prevails in any action brought in accordance with this section, the following damages: (1) Actual damages; (2) Punitive damages; and (3) The costs of the action, including attorney's fees and litigation costs. 4. This section does not affect a right or remedy available under any other law of the state. 5. Nothing in this section shall be interpreted to have any effect on a party that is neither the vlogger nor the child engaged in the work of vlogging.

  amended

Action History

1. April 02, 2025

   HCS Reported Do Pass (H) - AYES: 8 NOES: 0 PRESENT: 0

2. April 01, 2025

   HCS Voted Do Pass (H)

3. April 01, 2025

   Executive Session Completed (H)

4. March 12, 2025

   Public Hearing Completed (H)

5. February 25, 2025

   Referred: Commerce(H)

6. January 09, 2025

   Read Second Time (H)

7. January 08, 2025

   Read First Time (H)

8. December 30, 2024

   Prefiled (H)

Sponsors

• Eric Woods · Primary

Votes

Subjects