U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) is making a year-end push for the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), legislation he sponsored with Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN). The pair are trying to get it over the finish line before Congress adjourns for the holidays.
The bipartisan bill would force social media companies to give parents and kids more options while using social media, such as the ability to turn off addictive features, opt out of algorithms and turn on privacy settings.
It passed the Senate 91-3, with House more than 70 co-sponsors. Now, it just needs a vote in the House.
However, on Tuesday, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said he wasn’t ready to call the vote yet, citing concerns about free speech.
“When you’re dealing with the regulation of free speech, you can’t go too far, and it is overbroad, but you want to achieve those objectives. So, it’s essential that we get this issue right,” Johnson told reporters.
Those concerns have been echoed by the ACLU, who, in September, said they were worried about the bill restricting access to information about reproductive healthcare, sexual orientation, and gender identity.
Blumenthal and Blackburn have continually denied those claims. Last weekend, they negotiated a redraft with input from Linda Yaccarino, the CEO of social media platform X. The legislation now has the support of Elon Musk, who owns X and is a member of President-elect Donald Trump’s inner circle.
“Over the weekend, we negotiated a redraft that clarifies what we have said all along,” Blumenthal said. “This bill is about product design, about protecting kids from toxic content driven at them by products designed specifically to addict them.”
The legislation also has support from Microsoft and Snap, which owns Snapchat.
Blumenthal has traveled to Connecticut to solicit input on the bill from children, teachers, and parents.
“Anybody saying, let's wait until next session, so we can get it really right, that is saying they're okay with more kids dying, they are in effect, with all due respect, playing political games with those lives that are at risk today,” Blumenthal said.
The House is expected to adjourn for the session on December 19.
