HB706 revises Missouri’s child labor law definitions and creates a new set of rules specifically for children under 16 who appear in compensated online video content, or “vlogging.” The bill repeals and replaces section 294.011 and adds sections 294.035 and 294.036 to define key terms such as child, employ, online platform, vlog, and vlogger, while preserving existing exceptions for certain child activities like newspaper delivery, childcare, occasional yard or farm work, and youth sporting events.
The bill establishes when a child is considered engaged in the work of vlogging, based on both the amount of content featuring the child and whether the content generates compensation or meets a platform’s monetization threshold. It also gives a child who reaches adulthood the right to request permanent deletion of qualifying vlog content featuring the child, and requires vloggers to maintain records about the child’s participation, compensation, and trust-account deposits. If records are not kept, the child may sue to enforce the law.
HB706 further requires vloggers to place a portion of gross earnings from qualifying content into a trust account for the child’s benefit. The trust must be held by a bank or trust company, follow Missouri’s transfer-to-minors rules, and become available when the child turns 18 or is emancipated. A knowing or reckless violation of the trust-account requirement can lead to a civil action for actual damages, punitive damages, and attorney’s fees. The bill is set to take effect on January 1, 2026.
The bill’s impact on state law is to extend Missouri child labor protections into the digital creator economy by treating some monetized child appearances in online videos as work subject to compensation and recordkeeping requirements. It creates new obligations for vloggers and online platforms, adds a deletion right for former child participants, and provides a private right of action for enforcement. It also leaves other remedies under state law intact and states that it does not affect parties who are neither the vlogger nor the child featured in the content.
No committee debate or vote history was provided, so the overall sentiment cannot be measured from recorded discussion. Based on the bill’s structure and caption, the measure appears aimed at child protection and financial safeguards for minors in online content creation. The main likely point of contention is how broadly the law reaches family vloggers and other online creators, especially because it imposes trust-account obligations, recordkeeping duties, and potential liability tied to monetized content featuring children.
HB706 would amend Missouri’s child labor statutes by redefining and expanding coverage to certain compensated online video activities involving children under 16. It creates new duties for vloggers to track child participation, preserve earnings in trust for the child, and provide records, while also authorizing civil enforcement and damages for violations. The bill also gives former child participants a right to request deletion of qualifying content from monetized platforms and takes effect January 1, 2026.
No committee transcripts or vote records were provided, so there is no documented legislative debate or recorded vote sentiment to summarize. From the bill text and caption, the measure appears to be framed as a child-protection and financial-rights bill for minors in online content creation, suggesting generally protective intent rather than a punitive regulatory approach. Any public reaction would likely center on balancing child welfare with the realities of family content creation and online monetization.
The most notable potential contention is the bill’s application to family vloggers and monetized online creators, since it treats some child appearances in videos as labor and requires trust-account deposits and detailed records. Another likely point of debate is the deletion provision, which could affect archived content and platform responsibilities. The bill also raises questions about how to measure a child’s share of content, how platforms will comply with deletion requests, and whether the law could be difficult to administer for smaller creators or mixed-age family channels.