Governor Hochul Secures Investments to Keep Our Kids Safe Online and Bolster Youth Mental Health Resources as Part of the FY 2027 Budget

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced landmark investments to keep New York's kids safe online and address the state's youth mental health crisis as part of the FY27 Enacted Budget. These initiatives include strengthening protections for children from online dangers and implementing a first-of-its-kind statewide expansion of Teen Mental Health First Aid training. The budget will build on the Governor's nation-leading work to ban smartphones in schools, restrict addictive feeds, enact social media warning labels, and create safeguards against harmful AI companions. Governor Hochul's broad agenda to strengthen New York's mental health continuum of care also included the implementation of more school-based mental health clinics, community-based treatment options, and peer-based supports for youth and adults.

"As New York's first mom Governor, I recognize the unprecedented challenges and online dangers our kids are facing everyday," Governor Hochul said. "This budget is taking historic steps to strengthen online protections and bolster youth mental health resources. Through these initiatives, New York is empowering parents and children to more effectively navigate the unique challenges they are facing both on and offline."

New Protections for Kids on Online Platforms

Numerous lawsuits and investigations have alleged that online platforms have not taken appropriate steps to protect the children using them. These online platforms allow adults to engage with children in ways that leave children susceptible to grooming, child abuse, and exposure to risks, including predatory behaviors.

The Governor's legislation to keep kids safe from emerging threats on online platforms, including social media and gaming platforms, will include:

• Privacy by Default: Kids will be set to the highest privacy settings on covered platforms by default, meaning non-connections above the age of 18 cannot privately communicate with kids, view their full profile, or tag them in content. Location settings will also be turned off by default, and children under 13 must receive parental approval for new connections.
• Disabling AI Chatbot Features: Disabling certain AI chatbot features on online platforms for kids.
• Parental Controls: Parents must be able to set limits on children's financial transactions on online gaming platforms and view their child's transaction history.

State Senator Andrew Gounardes said, "For far too long, Big Tech turned a blind eye while social media and gaming platforms became hotbeds of child exploitation and abuse. The truth is, they've been more concerned about profits than kids' safety. Since they wouldn't act, we did. Gaming and social companies will have to implement real privacy protections and meaningful safeguards so their platforms are no longer a place for rampant grooming of children. Parents shouldn't have to worry that their kids are being targeted by predators while they play video games with their friends online. As a father of young children, I know the stakes are high. Today, we're taking a step toward a safer, better internet for all New Yorkers. I want to thank Governor Hochul for her leadership and for including this in her budget."

State Senator Samra Brouk said, "As Chair of the Senate Mental Health Committee, I recognize that youth mental health is still a crisis in New York State. I applaud Governor Hochul for investing in our young people by protecting them from predatory online platforms, keeping them safe on social media, and expanding mental health training to help thousands of teens develop awareness of mental health and substance use challenges to support themselves and their peers."

State Senator Kristen Gonzalez said, "I want to thank Governor Hochul for prioritizing the safety of young people in New York. During this year's AI Week in Albany, we brought together advocates, workers, and recognized Maria Raine for her family's tragic experience with chatbots, as part of the growing movement behind the fight for a safer digital future. These investments build on New York's national leadership in addressing the harms of addictive algorithms, dangerous AI systems, and online platforms that too often put profit ahead of children's wellbeing. By pairing stronger online protections with expanded mental health support for young people, this budget takes an important step toward creating a healthier and safer future for the next generation."

Assemblymember Steve Otis said, "One of the highlights of this year's adopted state budget is the series of new measures to improve the safety of children online. New provisions to provide privacy by default, enhanced parental controls, and chatbot protections build upon safety measures we have enacted in recent years. Governor Hochul and her team have made protecting children in the always changing and concerning online technology environment a major priority. New York continues to be a national leader in protecting children from online and technological threats."

Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon said, "One of the top concerns I hear about is the mental health crisis that young people are facing every day. To address youth mental issues, we made significant budget investments in services like teen mental health first aid and strengthened protections from online threats. I'm grateful to the Governor for her extraordinary leadership on this issue so that every young person can thrive."

Assemblymember Nily Rozic said, "Protecting young people online is among the most important responsibilities we share as lawmakers, parents, and communities. These landmark investments in this year's budget will help ensure that children are safer from predatory behavior and harmful online content, while giving families stronger tools to protect their children's privacy and safety online. I'm proud to partner with Governor Hochul and my legislative partners to advance policies that put the wellbeing of our young people first and build safer online environments for kids across New York."

Expanding Mental Health Training For Hundreds of Thousands of Teens

Governor Hochul's investment will make Teen Mental Health First Aid training available to all 10th graders across New York State. New York will phase in a commitment to make training available to more than 180,000 students annually, ensuring that over time most high school students will have the basic skills to support themselves and each other.

When teens experience mental health and substance use challenges, often their first resort is to talk to their peers. Likewise, friends are often best positioned to identify and empathize with stressors that may be acting on fellow students. Research demonstrates that with training, young people have the capacity to both identify and effectively respond to mental health challenges in ways that can improve and even save lives.

This training is designed for young people between the ages of 15 and 18 so they can identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental health and substance use challenges in their friends and peers. It equips them with skills to recognize common signs and symptoms of mental health and substance use challenges; the impact of bullying and school violence on mental health; how to have impactful conversations with classmates about mental health concerns or to seek help from an adult; formal and informal support; and self-care.

As part of this investment, the State will also offer Youth Mental Health First Aid training for adults who regularly interact with youth in schools and community programs. This nationally-recognized curriculum introduces common mental health challenges for youth, reviews typical adolescent development, and teaches a 5-step action plan for how to help young people in both crisis and non-crisis situations.

New York State Office of Mental Health Commissioner Dr. Ann Sullivan said, "In our discussions with young people about mental health issues, one consistent thread became clear - youth reach out to their peers when they are in distress. Teen Mental Health First Aid helps young New Yorkers talk with their classmates and friends about mental health issues and provides them with the know-how to get them help when it is needed. By expanding this program, Governor Hochul is continuing her steadfast commitment to improving youth mental health and providing our young people with the skills they can rely on to live and thrive among the challenges they face today."

President and CEO of the National Council for Mental Wellbeing Chuck Ingoglia and Vice President of Mental Health First Aid Tramaine EL-Amin said, "This announcement represents a historic and transformative investment in youth mental health. We are deeply grateful to Governor Hochul for her bold leadership and unwavering commitment to the mental wellbeing of New York's students. By expanding teen Mental Health First Aid to reach all 10th graders statewide, New York is setting a powerful national standard - normalizing conversations about mental health, reducing stigma and equipping an entire generation with critical, potentially lifesaving skills. The National Council is proud to partner in this effort and remains fully committed to supporting schools, educators, parents and communities as this landmark initiative moves forward."

New York State will also launch a robust package of initiatives designed to strengthen the mental health infrastructure, enhance substance use prevention, and expand recovery resources for youth and young adults across the state.

• Scaling Youth Safe Spaces: The Office of Mental Health (OMH) will expand its Youth Safe Spaces program by designating two additional community organizations to provide non-clinical, supportive, and non-judgmental environments where teens can access wellness resources and build positive peer relationships.
• Recognizing Schools Providing Enhanced Mental Health Supports: A new "Schools of Distinction in Supporting Strong Mental Health" designation will be established. This award will recognize, reward, and provide financial incentives to schools meeting high benchmarks in crisis prevention, stigma reduction, and mental health screenings.
• Hosting a Youth-Led Substance Use Prevention Symposium: The Office of Addiction Services and Support (OASAS) will host a peer-led symposium for students to learn about the dangers of substance use and mental health maintenance from their peers. This will be paired with a youth-focused social media and digital media engagement campaign.
• Expanding Evidence-Based Training for Child-Serving Clinicians: Governor Hochul will direct OMH to publish a 10-year training roadmap ensuring all child-serving clinicians in agency settings are fully trained in evidence-based practices, establishing New York as a national leader in youth mental health care.
• Opening 15 New Youth Clubhouses for Recovery Support: To foster community-based recovery and life-skills training, OASAS will open up to 15 new Youth Clubhouses, co-located with existing Recovery Community and Outreach Centers, focusing on underserved counties.
• Bolstering Support for LGBTQ+ Youth: To counter the federal attacks on specialized crisis services, OMH will partner with a national crisis center to provide LGBTQ+ youth with specialized crisis counseling and train hundreds of local 988 crisis counselors to handle specific concerns of LGBTQ+ youth.
• Increasing Mental Health Supports for Indigenous Youth: Building on the Indigenous Mental Wellbeing Pilot Program, the State will partner with Tribal Nations to expand transitional support workers and peer advocates in Indigenous-serving school districts. Additionally, a new Indigenous School Mental Health Workforce Center will be created to support SUNY students pursuing careers in school-based mental health.

Governor Hochul's Investments in Youth Mental Health

These investments build on Governor Hochul's ongoing efforts to address the youth mental health crisis statewide and help keep kids safe online. This work has established New York as a global leader in securing a safer online world for children. Initiatives include:

• The SAFE for Kids Act, which restricts addictive features of social media for kids.
• The Child Data Protection Act that prevents online operators from collecting and monetizing children's data without informed consent.
• AI Companion legislation which set first-in-the-nation safeguards, diverting user conversations about self-harm to mental health resources and interrupting unhealthy addictive behaviors. The Governor also outlawed AI-Generated Child Sexual Abuse Material.
• The Unplug and Play Agenda which helps encourage the healthy socialization and child development by funding social infrastructure, physical sites like playgrounds, community centers, and pools, and expanded youth programming.
• New York's Distraction Free Learning Policy, requiring statewide, bell-to-bell restrictions on smartphones in K-12 schools, which is already resulting in greater academic achievement, improved student wellbeing, and safer school environments for students.
• The Warning Labels bill that will require social media companies post warnings about the platform's potential impact on mental health.

Governor Hochul's nation-leading $1 billion mental health initiative and hundreds of millions of dollars in funding in subsequent budgets is significantly expanding access to care for young people and their families -from increasing inpatient and residential treatment capacity to building community-based services designed to help youth remain at home and in their community.

• Governor Hochul also expanded school-based mental health clinics, which help students get a licensed mental health care provider in a familiar stigma-free setting on their school campus. The state now supports more than 1,300 clinic satellites, up from 872 in 2020, covering about 25 percent of all NYS public schools.
• Governor Hochul's focus on youth mental health also led to the creation of new Youth Assertive Community Treatment teams to support young people with serious emotional disturbances who are either at risk of entering, or are returning home from high intensity services, such as inpatient settings or residential services. New York funds 43 new Youth ACT teams - 23 now operational - in 35 counties, providing youth and family therapy, medication management, family and peer support, and skill-building.
• There are also now 66 Home Based Crisis Intervention Teams accepting referrals - which serve youth between the ages of 5 and 20 and provide intensive individualized services to help families support young people recovering from mental illness in their own homes. An additional eight teams are in development, including six that will serve youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
• Governor Hochul also established the Youth Mental Health Advisory Board, a 30-member advisory board which includes youth between the ages of 11 and 17. The advisory board convenes quarterly and is designed to ensure that youth-informed best practices continue to be incorporated in developing behavioral health programs and policies.
• Governor Hochul also expanded Youth Safe Spaces programs, an initiative developed with input from the Governor's Youth Mental Health Advisory Board. These programs provide a place for young people between the ages of 12 and 24 to access behavioral health and wellness resources, foster positive relationships with their peers, and receive support in a comfortable setting. There are now seven of these programs funded.