Kids Online Safety Act

Proposed United States legislation

Kids Online Safety Act

Long title| A bill to protect the safety of children on the internet.
Acronyms (colloquial)| KOSA
Announced in| the 118th United States Congress
Sponsored by| House: Gus Bilirakis
Senate: Richard Blumenthal
Number of co-sponsors| House: 64
Senate: 72
Legislative history

* Introduced in the Senate as S. 1409 by Richard Blumenthal (D‑CT) and Marsha Blackburn (R‑TN) on May 2, 2023
* Committee consideration by Senate Commerce
* Passed the Senate on July 30, 2024 (91–3)

Youth rights

Activities

* Bailey v. Drexel Furniture Co.
* Child Labor Deterrence Act
* Children's Online Privacy Protection Act
* Kids Online Safety Act
* Convention on the Rights of the Child
* Fair Labor Standards Act
* Hammer v. Dagenhart
* History of youth rights in the United States
* Morse v. Frederick
* Newsboys' strike of 1899
* Prez
* Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms
* Wild in the Streets

Theory / concepts

* Adultcentrism
* Adultism
* Ageism
* Criminalization
* Democracy
* Ephebiphobia
* Fear of children
* Free-range parenting
* Intergenerational equity
* Future generations
* Paternalism
* Social class
* Suffrage
* Taking Children Seriously
* Universal suffrage
* Unschooling
* Youth activism
* Youth detention center
* Youth empowerment
* Youth exclusion
* Youth suffrage
* Youth voice

Issues

* Adolescent sexuality
* Age of candidacy
* Age of consent
* Age-of-consent reform
* Age of majority
* Age of marriage
* Behavior modification facility
* Child labour
* Children in the military
* Child marriage
* Compulsory education
* Conscription
* Corporal punishment
* at home
* at school
* in law
* Curfew
* Child abuse
* Emancipation of minors
* Gambling age
* Human rights and youth sport
* In loco parentis
* Juvenile delinquency
* Juvenile court
* Juvenile law
* Legal drinking age (U.S. history)
* Legal working age
* Minimum driving age
* Marriageable age
* Minor (law)
* Minors and abortion
* Restavec
* School leaving age
* Smoking age (U.S. history)
* Status offense
* Underage drinking in the US
* Voting age
* Youth-adult partnership
* Youth participation
* Youth politics
* Youth unemployment
* Youth voting

Organizations

* United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child
* Akt
* Americans for a Society Free from Age Restrictions
* Canadian Youth for Choice
* Human Rights and Youth Rights Commission
* Common Cents
* Community Alliance for the Ethical Treatment of Youth
* DoSomething
* Future Coalition
* Global Youth Action Network
* High School Democrats of America
* Indian Youth Climate Network
* International Falcon Movement – Socialist Educational International
* Mermaids
* National Union of Students LGBT+ Campaign
* National Youth Rights Association
* One World Youth Project
* Queer Youth Network
* Students for a Democratic Society
* Freechild Project
* Three O'Clock Lobby
* UK Youth Parliament
* Youth International Party
* Youth Liberation of Ann Arbor
* The Youth Cafe
* Young Communist League of Canada
* Young Democrats of America
* World Federation of Democratic Youth

People

* Fletcher
* Hanson
* Henry
* Holt
* Koroknay-Palicz
* Duff
* Males
* Postman
* Yaco

Related

* Ages of consent in Asia
* Ages of consent in Europe
* Ages of consent in North America
* Ages of consent in Oceania
* Ages of consent in South America
* Ages of consent in the United States
* Animal rights
* Anti-racism
* Direct democracy
* Egalitarianism
* Feminism
* French petitions against age-of-consent laws
* Legal status of tattooing in European countries
* Legal status of tattooing in the United States
* Libertarianism
* Students' rights
* Youth Olympic Games
* Youth sports
* Youth wing
* Liberation theology
* Communism
* Socialism
* Marxism

* Youth rights
* Society portal

* v
* t
* e

The Kids Online Safety and Privacy Act (KOSPA) (S. 2073), known in the House and commonly as the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) (H.R. 7891), is a proposed legislation first introduced in Congress in 2022. The bill aims to establish guidelines to protect minors from harmful material on social media platforms through a duty of care system and requiring covered platforms to disable "addicting" design features to minors.

The bill originates from the 2021 Facebook leak, which led to a congressional investigation of Big Tech's lack of protection for minors. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D‑CT) and Marsha Blackburn (R‑TN) co-sponsored the bill and introduced it to the Senate in 2022. It was revived for the 2023–2024 congressional term and while passed by the Senate in July 2024, it failed to advance out of the House of Representatives before the end of the session.

Though KOSA has bipartisan support, it has been criticized by both liberals and conservatives for potentially enabling censorship, including material important to marginalized groups, as well as material related to racism, abortion, and transgender issues.[1]

## Background

[edit]

Main article: Children's Online Privacy Protection Act

In 1998, Congress passed the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, which came after concerns about data collection practices towards minors.[2][3] The legislation set guides on child online safety, notably banning companies from knowingly collecting the data for anyone under 13 without parental consent.[4]

In the years following COPPA, as the popularity of the internet would rise drastically, concerns from parents about the safety of social media would arise out of concerns that it was contributing to a mental health crisis among teens, eventually leading to a push for new child online safety legislations.[3][5]

## History

[edit]

Richard Blumenthal (pictured in 2011)

Marsha Blackburn (pictured in 2016)

Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), along with Co-Sponsor Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), first introduced the bill in 2022.

KOSA was introduced to the Senate by senators Richard Blumenthal and Marsha Blackburn on February 16, 2022. The bill was a direct result after Frances Haugen, a data scientist for Facebook, leaked internal files through The Wall Street Journal in 2021 that showed negative effects of Instagram on minors' mental health, among other topics. The leak led to a Congressional investigation of Big Tech's lack of protection for young users with Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri testifying to Congress in December 2021.[6] Blumenthal, citing the leaked Facebook data, stated that the bill's intention was "not to burn the internet to the ground, not to destroy tech platforms or the internet or these sites; it is simply to enlist the social media platforms in this joint effort to achieve what should be a common goal—protecting children."[7]

The bill was advanced by the Senate Commerce Committee in July 2022, alongside an updated version of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), the Children and Teens' Online Privacy Protection Act (also known as COPPA 2.0).[8] Both were poised to be passed in the Senate as part of larger legislation near the end of the term for the 117th Congress, but failed to pass.[9]

President Joe Biden endorsed KOSA when it was reintroduced in 2023 and congratulated the Senate for passing it the following year.[10]

President Joe Biden pushed Congress to pass legislation to protect children online during his 2023 State of the Union Address, leading Blackburn and Blumenthal to reintroduce KOSA in the Senate on May 2, 2023.[11] KOSA and COPPA 2.0 were approved by the Senate Commerce Committee on July 27, 2023.[12]

In November 2023, whistleblower and former Meta engineering director Arturo Beja testified in congress before a Senate subcommittee hearing about social media and the teen mental health crisis, leading to a renewed push for the bill.[13][14][15]

In January 2024, the Senate held a meeting with the CEOs of Meta, TikTok, Snap Inc., Discord, and Twitter regarding child safety. This hearing led to a renewed push for the bill.[16][17][18][19] By February 2024, the bill gained enough backers in the Senate to assure its passage, though there had yet to be a companion bill introduced in the House of Representatives.[20] An attempt was made to append it into the FAA reauthorization act in May 2024.[21] Later, the Senate combined KOSA with COPPA 2.0 and the Filter Bubble Transparency Act into the Kids Online Safety and Privacy Act (S. 2073).[22] After introduction on the 23rd by Chuck Schumer as an amendment replacing the Eliminate Useless Reports Act,[23] the new bill passed by a vote of 91–3 on July 30, 2023.[24][25]

The House of Representatives had yet to pass their version of the bill by July 2024. A planned markup session for KOSA and other bills by the House Energy and Commerce commission in late June 2024 was abruptly canceled, with speculation that there were disagreements with Republican leaders on a separate privacy bill.[26] In August 2024, Punchbowl News reported that the Republican leadership of the House would not advance KOSA, citing a staffer who referred to "concerns across our Conference".[27]

The bill advanced out of the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on September 18, 2024, though several amendments focused around the "duty of care" portions of the legislation were added hastily before advancing, creating larger gaps with the Senate version causing some lawmakers to protest or withdraw their support for the bill.[28][29] No further actions were taken on the bill before the end of the 118th Congress, nullifying it's progress. Blumenthal reintroduced the bill in the 119th Congress (2025-2026) in May 2025.[30][31]

## Legislation

[edit]

The Kids Online Safety Act, if signed into law, would require Internet service platforms to take measures to reduce online dangers for these users via a "duty of care" provision, requiring Internet service platforms to comply by reducing and preventing harmful practices towards minors, including bullying and violence, content "promoting" suicide, eating disorders, or substance abuse, sexual exploitation, and advertisements for illegal products such as drugs, tobacco, or alcohol.[32]

If signed into law, internet service platforms would be required to include features that would protect minors and their data, ensure the ability to opt-out of algorithmic recommendations, let minors delete their account and any associated data, restrict communications from non-minors,[32] and disable addictive product features such as autoplay for videos or platform rewards.[33] The bill would also require internet service platforms to default to the highest possible privacy settings for accounts that belong to minors.[32]

Internet service platforms would be required to introduce tools for parents to better protect their children and make it easier for both parents and minors are able to report harmful content and to undergo independent, third-party audits and issue public transparency reports detailing possible harms to minors and the efforts to address said harms.[33]

As amended in February 2024, most of the provisions in the bill would be enforced by individual state attorneys general with broader enforcement falling to the Federal Trade Commission, having an oversight over what content is deemed "harmful" to children and enforcing the duty of care provision.[32][34][35] In prior versions of the senate version of the bill, state attorneys general would have enforced the duty of care provisions, but due to concerns from LGBTQ activist groups, it was changed to be enforced by the FTC.[32]

## Legislative history

[edit]

Congress  | Short title  | Bill number(s)  | Date introduced  | Sponsor(s)  | # of cosponsors  | Latest status

|
|
|
|
|
|

117th Congress | Kids Online Safety Act of 2022  | S.3663 | February 16, 2022  | Richard Blumenthal

(D‑CT)

| 13  | Referred to committees of jurisdiction, but never saw a floor vote.
118th Congress | Kids Online Safety Act of 2023  | H.R. 7891 | April 19, 2023  | Gus M. Bilirakis

(R‑FL 12th)

| 64  | Referred to committees of jurisdiction and advanced, but never saw a House floor vote.
S. 1409 | May 2, 2023  | Richard Blumenthal

(D‑CT)

| 72  | Referred to committees of jurisdiction and advanced.
S. 2073 | July 23, 2024  | Chuck Schumer

(D‑NY)

|  | Passed 91–3.

## Reception

[edit]

This section relies excessively on references to primary sources. Please improve this section by adding secondary or tertiary sources.
Find sources: "Kids Online Safety Act" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (September 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

|

KOSA has received both support and criticism from conservatives and liberals.

KOSA has been supported by Microsoft, X, and Snap;[32] mental health groups, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, and the American Psychological Association; parental rights groups, including Common Sense Media[36] and ParentsSOS;[32] anti-pornography advocacy and lobbying group NCOSE;[37] the National Education Association; multinational corporation Unilever;[a][38] conservative think tank and Project 2025 organizer The Heritage Foundation;[39][40] fundamentalist Protestant organization Focus on the Family;[41] and rapper and singer Lizzo.[42][35]

Supporters of the bill argue that the bill will protect kids from harmful content,[43] hold Big Tech accountable for "failing to protect kids",[44] and enable parents access to tools to make minors safer.[45]

KOSA has been heavily criticized by members of the "Don't Delete Art" (DDA) movement, including American Civil Liberties Union, the National Coalition Against Censorship, Fight for the Future, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Woodhull Freedom Foundation, libertarian magazine Reason, and anti-abortion group Students for Life.[46]

The DDA has encouraged people to signal their opposition through an online petition that labels KOSA as one of several "Bad Internet Bills".[47] They have criticized the bill for being "too vague" in what it defines as "harmful content" and for potentially expanding the power of the FTC,[48] many have argued that the bill could be used to target marginalized communities (mainly the LGBTQ community),[49] censor free speech protected by the 1st Amendment,[50] make it harder for minors to search for information on controversial topics like racism, climate change, and LGBTQ issues, and implement ID-based age verification systems.[50]

A letter sent to the United States Congress by Evan Greer, director of Fight for the Future, and signed by multiple civil society groups, warns that KOSA could backfire and cause more harm to minors by overly censoring content due to a lack of specificity as to what constitutes "harm".[51][52][34] Fight for the Future has set up a Stop KOSA website for people to sign a petition and contact lawmakers against the bill.[53]

### Interpretation of harms

[edit]

Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) is a staunch opponent of KOSA, once comparing it to a Trojan horse.

Critics, including the EFF, note that the bill's definition of harm toward minors leaves room for broad interpretation by the state attorneys general who are charged with enforcing the bill,[54][55] with EFF likening it to the FOSTA-SESTA bills.[56] The bill was revised in February 2024 as to shift the enforcement of the "duty of care" aspects of the bill from state attorneys to the Federal Trade Commission, though states would still be able to enforce other parts of the bill.[57]

Republican Senator Rand Paul, who once called it "a Trojan horse",[48] argues that KOSA would be a "Pandora’s box of unintended consequences"[58] due to vague and broad provisions that would allow "nearly limitless content regulation" because platforms would "censor users rather than risk liability".[59] He has also claimed that KOSA would prevent minors from watching PGA golf or the Super Bowl on social media sites because of ads promoting beer and gambling when "those kids could just turn on the TV and see those exact same ads.”[60]

The conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation wrote that the initial 2022 iteration of KOSA did not go far enough, as the bill did not explicitly list transgender health care as a harm.[61][62] The inclusion of the phrase "consistent with evidence-informed medical information"[63] could be used by attorneys general to cherry-pick anti-trans sources as justification since there is no definition of what "evidence-based medical information" can include.[64] The Heritage Foundation would later express support for the bill, arguing that it could be used to censor trans-gender information.

Senator Blackburn, co-author of the bill, made comments in March 2024[contradictory] that the bill was needed for "protecting minor children from the transgender in this culture", which has led some to argue that the bill would be part of Project 2025,[65][66] though co-sponsor Blumenthal stated that the bill "does not target or censor anyone, including members of the LGBTQ community".[67] EFF columnist Jason Kelly states that in the framework provided by the bill, that KOSA could be used to censor education about racism in schools since it could be claimed that it impacts mental health.[68]

In September 2023, a video from the Family Policy Alliance showed Blackburn saying that there should be a priority to "protecting minor children from the transgender [sic] in this culture", alongside her promotion for KOSA, saying "This would put a duty of care and responsibility on the social media platforms, and this is where children are being indoctrinated."[69] This drew criticism from LGBTQ advocacy groups, fearing that the bill would allow LGBTQ information for minors to be censored. A group of 100 parents of trans kids signed an open letter shortly after the comments telling members of congress to oppose KOSA.[70][71][72] A spokesperson for Blackburn stated that KOSA was not intended to censor LGBT information.[69] To address these concerns, the bill's language was altered so that the "duty of care" only focused on the product design features that influenced minors' behavior with the platforms, and not the content. As a result, several LGBTQ groups, including GLAAD and GLSEN, dropped their opposition to the bill.[73] (GLAAD changed its position again in 2025, opposing the bill after "changes in FTC and other government leadership".[74]) The EFF, Fight for the Future, and the American Civil Liberties Union found the revisions far from adequate, arguing that LGBTQ content could still be suppressed by targeting any design feature that makes that content available.[57][75][76][77]

### Possible court challenges

[edit]

Some, like The Verge and the EFF, have argued that the bill could potentially face challenges in the Supreme Court or in lower courts if passed due to 1st Amendment violations. Similar state bills in Indiana,[78] Mississippi,[78] Texas, and Utah[79][80][81] were quickly struck down by their respective state courts as unconstitutional. The NetChoice court case is an indication that KOSA may face challenges in court.[82][83][84]

### Similar bill

[edit]

A similar law to KOSA was vetoed in Vermont by Governor Phil Scott, with his reasoning being that it would likely harm small businesses, violate the First Amendment, and die in court.[85]

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ under the Dove brand.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Lorenz, Taylor (February 1, 2024). "Online safety legislation is opposed by many it claims to protect". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved February 1, 2024.
2. ^ Magid, L.J. (April 24, 2000). "New Law Protects Kids Online, but It's No Substitute for Parenting". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved June 22, 2016.
3. ^ a b "What to know about the Kids Online Safety Act that just passed the Senate". July 31, 2024.
4. ^ "What age should my kids be before I let them use Instagram, Facebook, and other social media services?". Common Sense Media. Common Sense Media, Inc. Archived from the original on August 6, 2018. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
5. ^ "This bill aims to protect kids online, but Congress may not pass it". Fast Company. Associated Press. July 22, 2024.
6. ^ Sorkin, Andrew Ross; Kessler, Sarah; Gandel, Stephen; de la Merced, Michael J.; Hirsch, Lauren; Livni, Ephrat (February 17, 2022). "Child Safety Is the New Tech Battleground". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 25, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
7. ^ McKinnon, John D. (February 16, 2022). "Lawmakers Seek Tougher Online Safety Standards for Children". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
8. ^ Klar, Rebecca (July 27, 2022). "Bills to boost kids' online safety advance in Senate with bipartisan support". The Hill. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
9. ^ Gold, Ashley (November 16, 2022). "Kids' privacy online gets yearend push in Congress". Axios. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
10. ^ "Statement from President Joe Biden on Senate Passage of the Kids Online Safety and Privacy Act". July 30, 2024.
11. ^ Fiener, Lauren (May 2, 2023). "Lawmakers update Kids Online Safety Act to address potential harms, but fail to appease some activists, industry groups". CNBC. Archived from the original on July 27, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
12. ^ Killy, Makena (July 27, 2023). "Senate panel advances bills to childproof the internet". The Verge. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
13. ^ "Meta whistleblower to testify in Senate hearing on child safety, social media". November 3, 2023.
14. ^ https://www.techpolicy.press/overcoming-fear-and-frustration-with-the-kids-online-safety-act/][
15. ^ "U.S. Senate panel debates how to protect children on social media platforms • Tennessee Lookout". November 9, 2023.
16. ^ "Accusations, tears and rants: 5 takeaways from today's tech CEO hearing | CNN Business". CNN. January 31, 2024.
17. ^ "'It killed him': Families of victims of big tech, present at Senate hearing, share their stories". USA Today.
18. ^ "Meta, TikTok, and other tech companies go to Congress: All the news". January 31, 2024.
19. ^ https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/01/31/kids-online-safety-hearing-big-tech/
20. ^ Lima-Strong, Cristiano (February 15, 2024). "Senate poised to pass biggest piece of tech regulation in decades". Washington Post. Archived from the original on February 15, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
21. ^ "Senators try to add kids online safety bills to FAA act". May 2, 2024. Retrieved August 16, 2024.
22. ^ Duball, Joe (July 31, 2024), "Kids Online Safety and Privacy Act clears US Senate", News, International Association of Privacy Professionals, retrieved October 25, 2024
23. ^ "Eliminating Useless Reports Act of 2024", Congressional Record, vol. 170, no. 119, pp. S5174 – S5175, July 23, 2024, retrieved December 19, 2024
24. ^ "Senate passes bill to protect kids online and make tech companies accountable for harmful content". AP News. July 30, 2024. Retrieved August 16, 2024.
25. ^ "Senate passes the most significant child online safety bills in decades". NBC News. July 30, 2024. Retrieved August 16, 2024.
26. ^ Feiner, Lauren (June 27, 2024). "A meeting to consider a bipartisan privacy bill just crumbled". The Verge. Retrieved August 16, 2024.
27. ^ Desiderio, Andrew; Cohen, Max; Bresnahan, John (August 1, 2024). "Schumer's July journey: From anguish to hope". Punchbowl News. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
28. ^ "House committee advances Kids Online Safety Act". September 18, 2024.
29. ^ "House panel advances Kids Online Safety Act despite pushback". September 18, 2024.
30. ^ https://www.techdirt.com/2025/01/09/blumenthal-so-eager-to-bring-back-kosa-he-admits-its-purpose-is-censorship/
31. ^ https://time.com/7288539/kids-online-safety-act-status-what-to-know/
32. ^ a b c d e f g "What to know about the Kids Online Safety Act that just passed the Senate". Associated Press News. July 21, 2024.
33. ^ a b "The Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) Explained: What the Drafted Bill Could Mean for Online Child Safety". Thorn. March 20, 2024.
34. ^ a b Paul, Kari (March 11, 2024). "'New text, same problems': inside the fight over child online safety laws". The Guardian. Archived from the original on May 20, 2024. Retrieved May 20, 2024.
35. ^ a b Tenbarge, Kat (December 6, 2023). "200 groups push Congress to pass Kids Online Safety Act in 2024". NBC News. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved May 20, 2024.
36. ^ "Kids' Online Safety and Privacy Protections Take Major Step Forward in U.S. Senate | Common Sense Media".
37. ^ "'Kids Online Safety Act' Would Curb Rampant Harms to Children on Tech Platforms Named to 2024 Dirty Dozen List". April 11, 2024.
38. ^ "Protect kids' online safety and youth mental health". dove.
39. ^ "Don't Let Empty Objections Stop the Kids Online Safety Act". Archived from the original on August 6, 2024.
40. ^ https://x.com/Heritage/status/1660111875818790913?ref_src=twsrc^tfw|twcamp^tweetembed|twterm^1660111875818790913|twgr^6034eafb3f3b2f79b296b8cb26c57958d3e7deaf|twcon^s1_&ref_url=https://www.jezebel.com/the-senate-passed-a-bill-that-could-censor-abortion-trans-info-from-the-internet&mx=2
41. ^ "Kid's Online Safety Act – What It is and Why It's a Big Deal". August 30, 2024.
42. ^ "LGBTQ Activists Call on Lizzo to Drop Her Support for Kids Online Safety Act". April 27, 2023.
43. ^ "Austin American-Statesman Subscription Offers, Specials, and Discounts". Austin American-Statesman.
44. ^ "KOSA: It's Time for Big Tech to Protect Children Online". September 15, 2022.
45. ^ "Legislation to Protect Kids' Safety and Privacy on Social Media Passes U.S. Senate | Common Sense Media".
46. ^ "Legislation Alert: Students for Life Action Opposes the Deceptively Named Kids Online Safety Act". July 26, 2024.
47. ^ Nayyar, Rhea (July 26, 2023). "Artists Call on Congress to Stop 'Bad Internet Bills'". Hyperallergic. Archived from the original on July 27, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
48. ^ a b "KOSA moves forward in Congress, threatening free speech and encryption". July 29, 2024.
49. ^ "Don't Fall for the Latest Changes to the Dangerous Kids Online Safety Act". February 15, 2024.
50. ^ a b "The Kids Online Safety Act is Still a Huge Danger to Our Rights Online". May 2, 2023.
51. ^ "Letter: 90+ LGBTQ and human rights organizations oppose KOSA". Fight for the Future. November 28, 2022. Archived from the original on July 26, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
52. ^ Feiner, Lauren (May 2, 2023). "Lawmakers update Kids Online Safety Act to address potential harms, but fail to appease some activists, industry groups". CNBC. Archived from the original on July 27, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
53. ^ "Stop KOSA". Fight for the Future. Archived from the original on September 27, 2023. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
54. ^ Kelley, Jason (May 2, 2023). "The Kids Online Safety Act is Still A Huge Danger to Our Rights Online". Electronic Frontier Foundation. Archived from the original on July 26, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023. "It will be based on vague requirements that any Attorney General could, more or less, make up."
55. ^ Molloy, Parker (July 27, 2023). "Congress is About to Pass a Very Bad Internet Bill. Here's How You Can Stop It". Substack. Archived from the original on July 27, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023. "The bill would enforce monitoring of anyone under the age of seventeen and give state attorneys general the power to censor content."
56. ^ Philips, Sarah (July 27, 2023). "This Bill Threatens Access to LGBTQ+ Online Communities". Teen Vogue. Archived from the original on July 27, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023. "Like SESTA/FOSTA, KOSA creates the aforementioned duty of care for social media companies, giving state attorneys general the power to sue sites like Instagram or Twitter if they put up content they deem 'harmful' for kids and teens. With SESTA/FOSTA, we saw that tech companies preferred to shut down already-policed content about reproductive justice, LGBTQ+ identities, and sex education than risk a lawsuit."
57. ^ a b Feiner, Lauren (February 15, 2024). "Kids Online Safety Act gains enough supporters to pass the Senate". The Verge. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
58. ^ "Congress moves forward on the Kids Online Safety Act". July 25, 2024.
59. ^ "Blumenthal's Kids Online Safety Act passes Senate; faces criticism". July 30, 2024.
60. ^ "What to know about the Kids Online Safety Act". July 22, 2024.
61. ^ Eckert, Jared (March 21, 2022). "How Not To Keep Children Safe Online". The Heritage Foundation. Archived from the original on July 27, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
62. ^ Philips, Sarah (July 27, 2023). "This Bill Threatens Access to LGBTQ+ Online Communities". Teen Vogue. Archived from the original on July 27, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023. "KOSA's supporters might want to ignore the fact that it's a censorship bill in disguise, but the Heritage Foundation is saying the quiet part out loud. The hard-line conservative organization has openly said KOSA will help them censor the content conservatives don't want young people to have access to."
63. ^ "S.1409". Congress.gov. May 2, 2023. Archived from the original on July 31, 2023. Retrieved August 1, 2023. "Sec 3.b.2: the covered platform or individuals on the platform from providing resources for the prevention or mitigation of suicidal behaviors, substance use, and other harms, including evidence-informed information and clinical resources."
64. ^ Molloy, Parker (July 27, 2023). "Congress is About to Pass a Very Bad Internet Bill. Here's How You Can Stop It". Substack. Archived from the original on July 27, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023. "[In a block quote from Evan Greer] The phrase 'consistent with evidence-informed medical information' does nothing to prevent that, because AGs can always find cherry-picked studies to support their wild claims. They're doing this right now. In his 'emergency' order attempting to ban gender-affirming care, Missouri's attorney general cited a Swedish study that claims there is a lack of evidence to support the efficacy and safety of gender-affirming care. There is no legal definition of 'evidence-based'. Those are just words. This bill will absolutely allow AGs to go after platforms for recommending speech they don't like to younger users. Tying the duty of care to specific mental health outcomes is also problematic because it will lead to suppression of all discussion around those important but controversial topics."
65. ^ "This Bill Purports to Protect Kids from Big Tech. For LGBTQ+ Youth, It's a Grave Danger". July 12, 2024.
66. ^ "The Senate Passed a Bill That Could Censor Abortion, Trans Info From the Internet". Jezebel.
67. ^ "Senator appears to suggest bipartisan bill would censor transgender content online". NBC. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
68. ^ Kelley, Jason (May 2, 2023). "The Kids Online Safety Act is Still A Huge Danger to Our Rights Online". Electronic Frontier Foundation. Archived from the original on July 26, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023. "KOSA's co-author, Sen. Blackburn of Tennessee, has referred to education about race discrimination as 'dangerous for kids'. Many states have agreed and recently moved to limit public education about the history of race, gender, and sexuality discrimination."
69. ^ a b Latieves, Matt (September 5, 2023). "Senator appeared to suggest bipartisan bill would censor transgender content online". NBC News. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
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85. ^ https://governor.vermont.gov/sites/scott/files/documents/H.121 - Veto Letter.pdf

## External links

[edit]

* S.1409 Kids Online Safety Act on Congress.gov

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*[D‑CT]: Democrat of Connecticut
*[R‑FL 12th]: Republican of Florida's 12th congressional district
*[D‑NY]: Democrat of New York