The House Energy and Commerce Committee has introduced a set of 19 bills focusing on the protection of children and teens online. This move signals a significant legislative effort regarding internet regulation as Congress grapples with issues surrounding online speech rights.
The subcommittee on commerce is scheduled to review these bills, including the contentious Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), during a hearing. KOSA has garnered attention from advocacy groups, especially those representing parents affected by online harms such as cyberbullying, sextortion, and drug sales. However, a notable change in the new version of KOSA is the removal of the “duty of care” provision found in the previously passed Senate version. This provision would have held tech companies legally accountable for addressing various harms related to their platforms, which critics argued could inadvertently restrict lawful speech.
In the updated draft, the duty of care has been replaced with a requirement for social media platforms to implement “reasonable policies, practices, and procedures” to tackle specific harms: threats of physical violence, sexual exploitation, drug distribution, and financial deception. The level of these policies would depend on the platform’s scale and technical capabilities. The revised version also broadens its scope to include nonprofit platforms.
Additional significant bills in the package include the App Store Accountability Act, which mandates age verification at app stores, and the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0), which raises the privacy protections age limit from under 13 to under 17. Furthermore, the Reducing Exploitative Social Media Exposure for Teens (RESET) Act proposes to prohibit children and teens under 16 from maintaining social media accounts.
Last year, House Republican leadership did not advance KOSA, even after it received overwhelming support in the Senate. Concerns regarding constitutional implications and free speech were cited by House leaders, who are now reconsidering online safety legislation. Despite this renewed focus, the current proposals differ substantially from last year’s and the outcome remains uncertain.
Source: https://www.theverge.com/news/829492/house-energy-commerce-kids-online-safety-package