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Senate
SB344 / File No. 50 1
General Assembly File No. 50
February Session, 2026 Senate Bill No. 344
Senate, March 17, 2026
The Committee on Children reported through SEN. MAHER,
C. of the 26th Dist., Chairperson of the Committee on the part
of the Senate, that the bill ought to pass.
AN ACT PROTECTING CHILDREN'S SAFETY BY REQUIRING
AFFIRMATIVE CONSENT BY A PARENT OR GUARDIAN FOR THE
USE OF A CHILD'S LIKENESS ON SOCIAL MEDIA.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2026) (a) As used in this section: 1
(1) "Affirmative consent" means a written agreement under which a 2
parent or guardian of a child allows for the photographing or video 3
recording of such child for the purpose of using such child's name, 4
image or likeness in the promotion of any organization, product, service 5
or event; 6
(2) "Agreement" means a contract between the parent or guardian of 7
a child and another person; 8
(3) "Person" means an individual, a business, corporation, limited 9
liability company, union, association, firm, partnership, committee, club 10
or other organization or group of persons; and 11
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(4) "Social media" means an electronic medium where users may 12
create and view user -generated content, such as uploaded or 13
downloaded videos or still photographs, blogs, video blogs, podcasts or 14
instant messages. 15
(b) No person shall use a child's name, image or likeness for purposes 16
of marketing or advertising on social media or otherwise unless the 17
parent or guardian of such child provides affirmative consent. 18
(c) No person shall deny or limit a child from participating in an 19
organization or event or from using a product or service if the parent or 20
guardian of such child does not provide affirmative consent. 21
Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2026) (a) As used in this section: 22
(1) "Affirmative consent" means a written agreement under which a 23
parent or guardian of a child allows for the photographing or video 24
recording of such child for the purpose of using such child's name, 25
image or likeness in the promotion of any organization, product, service 26
or event; 27
(2) "Agreement" means a contract between the parent or guardian of 28
a child and a local or regional board of education, interdistrict magnet 29
school operator, governing council of a charter school or supervisory 30
agent of a nonpublic school; and 31
(3) "Social media" means an electronic medium where users may 32
create and view user -generated content, such as uploaded or 33
downloaded videos or still photographs, blogs, video blogs, podcasts or 34
instant messages. 35
(b) No local or regional board of education, interdistrict magnet 36
school operator, governing council of a charter school or supervisory 37
agent of a nonpublic school shall use a child's name, image or likeness 38
for purposes of marketing or advertising on social media or otherwise 39
unless the parent or guardian of such child provides affirmative 40
consent. 41
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(c) No local or regional board of education, interdistrict magnet 42
school operator, governing council of a charter school or supervisory 43
agent of a nonpublic school shall deny or limit a child from any school 44
activities, services or events because the parent or guardian of such child 45
does not provide affirmative consent. 46
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 October 1, 2026 New section
Sec. 2 July 1, 2026 New section
KID Joint Favorable
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The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of
the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not
represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose. In general,
fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional
knowledge. Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final
products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.
OFA Fiscal Note
State Impact: None
Municipal Impact: None
Explanation
The bill requires a parent or guardian to provide written consent to
use a child's name, image, or likeness for marketing or on social media,
which does not result in a fiscal impact. It is anticipated that schools and
other entities can meet the requireme nt to obtain consent through
existing resources.
The Out Years
State Impact: None
Municipal Impact: None
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OLR Bill Analysis
SB 344
AN ACT PROTECTING CHILDREN'S SAFETY BY REQUIRING
AFFIRMATIVE CONSENT BY A PARENT OR GUARDIAN FOR THE
USE OF A CHILD'S LIKENESS ON SOCIAL MEDIA.
SUMMARY
The bill prohibits using a child’s name, image, or likeness (NIL) for
marketing or advertising on social media or otherwise unless the parent
or guardian gives affirmative consent. Under the bill, “affirmative
consent” is a written contract (between the pa rent or guardian and
another entity, including individuals, businesses, unions, and other
organizations) to allow a child’s NIL to be used in photos or video
recordings to promote any organization, product, service, or event.
Additionally, the bill prohibits denying or limiting a child’s
participation in an organization, event, or from using a product or
service if the child’s parent or guardian does not give affirmative
consent.
The bill applies the same restrictions to the governing bodies of
public, charter, magnet, and nonpublic schools. For these entities,
“affirmative consent” is a written contract between the parent or
guardian and the governing body of a public, charter, magnet, or
nonpublic school.
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2026, except that the provisions
applying to schools are effective July 1, 2026.
COMMITTEE ACTION
Committee on Children
Joint Favorable
Yea 17 Nay 0 (03/05/2026)