Children’s online safety bill that had broad Senate support hits a roadblock in the House

A bill aimed at increasing children’s privacy and safety online, which won broad bipartisan support in the Senate, is stalled in the House amid resistance from leadership, highlighting Republican divisions on technology policy.

Supporters of the legislation are apparently optimistic that it will advance before the end of the year, hoping that the momentum of Senate approval will prove that the House’s resistance is an obstacle rather than a brick wall.

But the path forward is unclear.

A House leadership aide told The Hill that concerns across the Republican Party about the Children’s Online Safety Act (KOSA) — which passed the Senate 91-3 last month as part of a package that also included provisions like the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (known as COPPA 2.0) – suggest it “cannot be brought in its current form.”

“This could lead to censorship of conservative speech such as pro-life views, is almost certainly unconstitutional, and grants sweeping new authority to unelected bureaucrats in the [Federal Trade Commission]”, said the leadership advisor.

The bill, which would create regulations to govern the types of features that technology and social media companies could offer to minors online, is the result of years of advocacy and growing public awareness about the addictive potential of social media. and its effects on the mental health of young people. .

But opponents say the measure, as written, is not the solution.

“It’s a pleasant surprise that questions about how the bill actually works have crept into the need-to-do-something narrative,” said Josh Withrow, technology and innovation resident fellow at the free-market R Street Institute. who has criticized the legislation.

At the heart of the bill and the controversy surrounding it is KOSA’s “duty of care” provision, which requires platforms to design and implement features to prevent and mitigate harm to minors — such as that caused by content they promote. suicide, eating disorders and sexual exploitation. .

Just as support for the bill crossed ideologies, Republicans have strange bedfellows in opposition.

THE ACLU senthigh school students to the Capitol to lobby against the bill last month. Jenna Leventoff, senior policy counsel at the ACLU, said the organization is concerned that “platforms will end up censoring content that they think the FTC considers could cause harm.”

“A future Republican administration could try to censor LGBTQ voices and content or information about reproductive health care,” Leventoff said.

Supporters of the bill argue that concerns shared by House leadership and other critics are exaggerated or misunderstand the mechanics of the legislation.

“KOSA prohibits practices such as manipulative marketing, amplification of harmful content, and harmful design features that threaten young people online. KOSA does not require social media companies to remove, filter or block any content,” Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Florida), leader of the House version of KOSA, said in a statement. “Instead, the bill would force these companies to keep the best interests of young users in mind when designing platform features and prioritize the well-being of these users over engagement or profit.”

Danny Weiss, advocacy director at the nonprofit Common Sense Media, which supports the legislation, said the changes made to the bill give the FTC a smaller role than it had in previous versions — changes that won the senator’s support. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). Weiss noted that Senator J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), now former President Trump’s running mate, supported the bill.

“KOSA is about safety by design. These claims are being promoted by big tech companies, including Google and Meta, to allow them to continue profiting from our children,” Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), the leaders of KOSA and the COPPA 2.0 legislation that passed the Senate last month, he said in a joint statement to The Hill.

Despite resistance in the Chamber, KOSA supporters remain optimistic. Blackburn and Blumenthal said they “are confident the Kids’ Online Safety Act will be signed into law this year.”

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) previously spoke favorably about the need to address children’s safety online, giving KOSA supporters hope.

“Obviously, we need to protect children when it comes to online activity,” Johnson told CNBClast month. “The Internet is the Wild West, and some of these reforms are overdue.”

But while he suspected it would have “a lot of support,” Johnson said the House “would be looking at the exact details of the legislation.”

In the absence of a vote on Senate-passed legislation, one option to keep legislation moving is for the House Energy and Commerce Committee to perform a markup on the House version of KOSA.

Josh Golin, executive director of the nonprofit Fairplay that advocates for children’s consumer safety, said his group is “pretty confident” about a House increase in September.

“We see this as the logical and necessary next step no matter what path this bill takes,” Golin said.

But with just 13 days of voting scheduled in the House this month, before lawmakers take another pre-election break, there is a time crunch. The election results risk changing lawmakers’ thinking about moving forward with KOSA and COPPA 2.0.

Further complicating the dynamic are disagreements between leadership and House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.), which spilled into the open earlier this year. The committee abruptly canceled a scheduled June markup of 11 bills, including KOSA, after GOP leaders expressed opposition to another major technology bill in the batch. McMorris Rodgers, like many of the committee’s Republican members, supports KOSA.

“I am an eternal optimist – choosing to see opportunities where others may see challenges,” said Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-Florida), a lead sponsor of the House version of KOSA, in a statement, adding that he will “look forward to do whatever is necessary to build on this success and get meaningful legislation across the finish line.”

“It is critical that we implement better safeguards for children while at the same time empowering parents with the tools they need to keep children safe,” said Bilirakis.

Another option is to attach the KOSA to a piece of legislation that must be passed, such as a continuing resolution or a general funding bill. Weiss, from Common Sense Media, recalled that KOSA and COPPA were considered included in a global package in 2022, but negotiators ended up excluding it.

Weiss, however, still argues that the best course of action is for the House to pass the Senate-approved bill — and that members could campaign to address concerns families have about children online.

“No one thought the Senate would act. [Majority] Leader Schumer has promised to do so. He did it,” Weiss said. “The House has the opportunity to do exactly the same thing, and it can do it before the election, and it can send a powerful message to voters back home that they have listened and acted.”

Fairplay’s Golin said that as they continue to try to build support for KOSA in the House, his group plans to help facilitate meetings between parent advocates and lawmakers.

“[Parents] whose children have died because of online harm have been incredible at changing hearts, minds and votes when they meet directly with members,” said Golin.

“Don’t underestimate these parents and young people, because they are incredible. And when they tell their stories firsthand [to] members of Congress, it really makes a difference.”

This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story