House GOP advances kids' online safety package
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House Energy and Commerce Committee Republicans advanced a kids' online safety package with guardrails for AI chatbots at a markup Thursday after bipartisan negotiations broke down.
The big picture: House Republicans moved legislation that Democrats say misses the mark on protecting kids online and doesn't align with bipartisan Senate-passed proposals.
Driving the news: The KIDS Act advanced in a 28-24 vote, with all Democrats voting against it. The legislation now heads to the House floor.
The intrigue: Democrats said the House GOP package — which includes a version of the Kids Online Safety Act — contains preemption language that would limit states' ability to pass stronger laws to protect kids.
- The package also omits a "duty of care" that would require platforms to take reasonable steps to mitigate harms stemming from design features like endless scroll or algorithmic recommendations.
What they're saying: "We worked hard to try to make these bills bipartisan," E&C Chair Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.) said. "But the absence of bipartisan consensus cannot be an excuse for inaction."
The other side: "These bills would leave our kids less safe online than they are today," Ranking Member Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) said.
- "I believe that Republicans are handing Big Tech a giant gift by walking away from the stronger preemption standards that were previously included in these bills."
Zoom in: The package includes the SAFE BOTs Act, which focuses on AI interactions with kids.
- The measure would require providers to clearly disclose that a chatbot is an AI system and not a human and advise kids to take a break after three hours of continuous chatting.
- It would also prohibit chatbots from posing as licensed professionals like doctors or therapists.
Context: The Senate in 2024 passed a kids' online safety package — including KOSA and the Children and Teens' Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0) — in a bipartisan 91-3 vote. That version of KOSA included a duty of care.
What we're watching: There's bipartisan momentum once again in the upper chamber.
- Senators on Thursday passed their version of COPPA 2.0 by unanimous consent.
- E&C had planned to take up its version of COPPA 2.0, but Guthrie said he was pulling it from the markup to allow bipartisan talks to continue.
