California has ordered streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, Prime Video, and YouTube to stop cranking up the volume during commercial breaks. Under a law signed by California Governor Gavin Newsom on Monday, advertisements will be required to air at the same volume as content being streamed on the provider’s platform starting July 2026.
Bill 576 was introduced in February by California state senator Tom Umberg, citing a complaint from one of his staffers about the skyrocketing volume of streaming ads disturbing the sleep of his newborn. In a statement following the bill being signed into law, Umberg said it was inspired by “every exhausted parent who’s finally gotten a baby to sleep, only to have a blaring streaming ad undo all that hard work.”
The legislation is modeled on the Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation (CALM) Act, which enforces ad volume restrictions for TV broadcasters at the federal level, but doesn’t apply to streamers. Given California’s massive influence over the US entertainment industry, the new law could set a national standard.
“We heard Californians loud and clear, and what’s clear is that they don’t want commercials at a volume any louder than the level at which they were previously enjoying a program,” Newsom said in a statement. “By signing SB 576, California is dialing down this inconvenience across streaming platforms, which had previously not been subject to commercial volume regulations passed by Congress in 2010.”
