The two bills — the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and the Children’s and Teens Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0) — are the most comprehensive pieces of legislation passed in decades to regulate how social media impacts minors. KOSA creates a duty of care by requiring online platforms typically used by minors to take “reasonable” measures in the design of their platforms to safeguard against harms including suicidal behavior, cyberbullying, and sexual exploitation. Online platforms would also be required to limit design features that encourage or increase how often kids spend on the platform, including rewards, notifications, badges, push alerts, and other interactive elements that make the platform more addictive. COPPA 2.0 bans targeting advertising to children and teens. The bill also prohibits platforms from collecting personal data from minors without parental consent. The National Center on Sexual Exploitation celebrated the bills’ passage as “a monumental win for the safety of children online.” Sens. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who sponsored COPPA 2.0, issued a joint statement calling the legislation a “much-needed victory” for the future of America’s youth. “The Senate has sent a clear message that Big Tech's days of targeting and tracking kids and teenagers online are over,” the statement read. “Enough with harmful targeted advertising. Enough with collecting deeply personal information on young people. Enough with ignoring the health and well-being millions of young people.” The legislation passed by a 91-3 vote, with three senators joining opposition concerned that the bills could inadvertently create more harm than good and possibly result in more censorship for online users of all ages. Sens. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) voted against the bills. In a statement posted to X, Paul defended his decision to vote against the legislation. “Government mandates and censorship will not protect children online,” Paul wrote. “The internet may pose new problems but there is an age old solution to this issue. Free minds & parental guidance are the best means to protect our children online.” Lee issued similar remarks, writing in a post on X that “The Kids Online Safety Act ('KOSA') fails to meaningfully address the most urgent threats to America’s children online, while opening the door to political censorship by the federal government.” Wyden referenced a separate statement made days ago on X explaining his decision to not back the bills. “I fear KOSA could be used to sue services that offer privacy technologies like encryption or anonymity features that kids rely on to communicate securely and privately without being spied on by predators online,” he said. “Whatever happens to this bill, I look forward to working with my colleagues on other solutions to keep kids safer online that don't undermine Americans' fundamental right to privacy,” he added. The legislation will not be sent to President Joe Biden’s desk in the near future, as the House just began its six-week summer recess and will not re-convene until Sept. 9. House Speaker Mike Johnson is also still reviewing the legislation and has not scheduled a vote.The U.S. Senate has passed a pair of bills aimed at increasing safety and privacy for children.
