Ohio will receive $319 million from Meta's $17 billion settlement with 47 states, mandating daily time limits and overnight blocks on Instagram and Facebook for minors.
The settlement, announced Wednesday, Aug. 26, resolves allegations that Meta deliberately designed its platforms to addict children. A federal judge must still approve the deal before changes take effect.
For families across West Chester Township, Liberty Township and the rest of Ohio, the required changes are specific. Meta must cap teen screen time at two hours per day, with mandatory pauses after 15, 60 and 90 minutes of continuous use, according to the Indiana Capital Chronicle. The platforms must also block access for minors from midnight to 6 a.m. and silence push notifications on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. during the school year.
Visible "like" counts and cosmetic surgery and beauty filters will disappear for users under 18. Parents will gain stronger content controls.
Dr. Chris Tuell, clinical director of addiction services at the Lindner Center of Hope in Mason, said the settlement addresses a problem he sees in his practice daily.
"We have a whole generation growing up with this, raised with the internet, raised with their phones, and it becomes so problematic that they have lost touch with how you really connect," Tuell told WLWT on Aug. 26.
Tuell noted that the prefrontal cortex, the brain's center for rational and ethical decision-making, does not fully develop until age 25 or 26. That biological reality, he said, makes teens especially vulnerable to addictive platform design.
What the money covers
Meta has committed to paying roughly $12.7 billion over 10 years. The remaining $5 billion is contingent on rivals including TikTok, Snapchat and YouTube adopting similar safety measures, according to Al Jazeera.
The $17 billion total represents a fraction of Meta's 2025 revenue of $201 billion. Meta did not admit wrongdoing. In a statement, the company said it worked with state attorneys general to establish a new industry standard for teen safety.
How Ohio plans to spend its $319 million share has not been announced. Other states have earmarked settlement funds for children's mental health programs.
What happens next
Once U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers approves the settlement, Meta must introduce non-personalized feeds within four months and complete major age-verification changes within one year, according to Al Jazeera. The deal does not resolve separate lawsuits filed by school districts, according to Education Week.
Common Sense Media CEO James Steyer called the agreement "social media's Big Tobacco moment."
No approval hearing date has been set. The separate school-district lawsuits, which could affect districts like Lakota, remain pending.
