Illinois to Receive Meta Settlement Funds

Settlement Background

Illinois is set to receive up to nearly$768M over a 10-year periodfrom a multistate $17.1B settlement with Meta Platforms, Inc., one of the largest state consumer protection settlements in U.S. history, trailing only settlements with tobacco manufacturers under the 1998 Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement (MSA). The settlement, announced on August 26 and initially filed in 2023, resolves claims brought by 47 states alleging that the technology company intentionally designed addictive platforms that harmed young people’s mental health. The settlement abruptly suspended a federal jury trial in Oakland, California, and a judge approved the agreement hours later, although final court approval of the full terms remains pending.

 

Terms of the Settlement

Under the settlement, Meta has agreed to pay approximately 70% of the $17.1B total, or roughly $12.7B. The remaining 30%, approximately $5.3B, would be released only if its competitors—YouTube, Snapchat, and TikTok—implement similar safety measures and collectively pay the corresponding amount. A portion of the settlement will resolve the initial lawsuit brought jointly by 29 states in 2023, while the remainder will resolve claims involving Meta and other states and territories.

 

In addition to the monetary payment, Meta has agreed to implement several child-safety reforms across its apps as part of a proposed “consent judgment,” according to the court filing. The reforms include a two-hour daily time limit with mandatory pauses; a midnight-to-6:00 AM content block; muted notifications during school hours; stronger age-verification measures; the removal of beauty filters and visible “like” counts for teens; and enhanced safeguards against harmful content. An independent auditor will review Meta’s implementation of the reforms during the first five years.

 

Illinois Spending Proposals

In short, Gov. JB Pritzker and Attorney General Kwame Raoul will have significant discretion over the settlement funds, so long as spending connects to youth mental health and online safety. The settlement identifies potential uses for the funds, including crisis intervention services, digital literacy counselors, and after-school programs. However, theagreement gives states broad discretionto determine how the funds are ultimately spent: “The amount paid to each Settling State shall be used for any lawful purpose consistent with the State’s Attorney General’s authority…”

 

Several Illinois organizations have already advocated for specific uses of the settlement funds. The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) and the Illinois Federation of Teachers (IFT), for example, have called for the entire $768M to be directed toward education. The groups have pointed to the state’s lagging progress toward the targets established by the Evidence-Based Funding law, as well as Chicago Public Schools’ (CPS) budget deficit, which relies on $150M in unappropriated funds. Gov. Pritzker has rejected dedicating the full settlement to education, arguing that “one-time money should really be used for one-time needs” and that “education is not the only need that the state has.” However, he has also stated that if CPS identifies “a real required short-term need” he would be open to allocating a portion of the Meta settlement funding to address it.

 

Attorney General Raoul has characterized discussions about how to spend the settlement funds as “premature” while final court approval remains pending. His office has indicated that most of the funds will be directed toward addressing harms associated with teen social media use, although specific spending proposals have not yet been finalized.

 

Separately, Illinois enacted its own Children’s Social Media Safety Act (Public Act 104-664) this summer, which takes effect in 2028. The law goes further than the settlement in certain areas, including requiring device-level age verification and prohibiting the use of minors’ data to curate content.

 

Important Upcoming Dates – Statewide

November 3– Illinois General Election

November 17-19– Veto Session Week 1

December 1-3– Veto Session Week 2

 

In the News

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