II 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1409 

To protect the safety of children on the internet. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 2, 2023 

Mr. BLUMENTHAL (for himself, Mrs. BLACKBURN, Mr. LUJA ́N, Mrs. CAPITO, 

Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. CASSIDY, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Ms. ERNST, Mr. PETERS, 

Mr. DAINES, Mr. HICKENLOOPER, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. WARNER, Mr. SULLIVAN, Mr. COONS, Mr. YOUNG, Mr. SCHATZ, Mr. GRASSLEY, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. GRAHAM, Mr. WELCH, Mr. MARSHALL, Ms. HASSAN, Mrs. 

HYDE-SMITH, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. MULLIN, Mr. CASEY, Mr. RISCH, Mr. 

WHITEHOUSE, Mrs. BRITT, Mr. SCOTT of Florida, Ms. LUMMIS, and Mr. 

CORNYN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To protect the safety of children on the internet. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Kids Online Safety Act’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 


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Sec. 3. Duty of care. 

Sec. 4. Safeguards for minors. 

Sec. 5. Disclosure. 

Sec. 6. Transparency. 

Sec. 7. Independent research. 

Sec. 8. Market research. 

Sec. 9. Age verification study and report. 

Sec. 10. Guidance. 

Sec. 11. Enforcement. 

Sec. 12. Kids online safety council. 

Sec. 13. Effective date. 

Sec. 14. Rules of construction and other matters. 

Sec. 15. Severability. 

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (1) CHILD.—The term ‘‘child’’ means an indi4 vidual who is under the age of 13. 

5 (2) COMPULSIVE USAGE.—The term ‘‘compul6 sive usage’’ means any response stimulated by exter7 nal factors that causes an individual to engage in re8 petitive behavior reasonably likely to cause psycho9 logical distress, loss of control, anxiety, depression, 

10 or harmful stress responses. 

11 (3) COVERED PLATFORM.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘covered 

13 platform’’ means a social media service, social 

14 network, online video game (including edu15 cational games), messaging application, video 

16 streaming service, or an online platform that 

17 connects to the internet and that is used, or is 

18 reasonably likely to be used, by a minor. 


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1 (B) EXCEPTIONS.—The term ‘‘covered 

2 platform’’ does not include— 

3 (i) an entity acting in its capacity as 

4 a provider of— 

5 (I) a common carrier service sub6 ject to the Communications Act of 

7 1934 (47 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) and all 

8 Acts amendatory thereof and supple9 mentary thereto; 

10 (II) a broadband internet access 

11 service (as such term is defined for 

12 purposes of section 8.1(b) of title 47, 

13 Code of Federal Regulations, or any 

14 successor regulation); 

15 (III) an email service; or 

16 (IV) a wireless messaging service 

17 provided through the short messaging 

18 service or multimedia messaging serv19 ice protocols; 

20 (ii) an organization not organized to 

21 carry on business for its own profit or that 

22 of its members; 

23 (iii) any public or private preschool, 

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1 stitution of vocational, professional, or 

2 higher education; or 

3 (iv) a product or service that pri4 marily functions as business-to-business 

5 software. 

6 (4) MENTAL HEALTH DISORDER.—The term 

7 ‘‘mental health disorder’’ has the meaning given the 

8 term ‘‘mental disorder’’ in the Diagnostic and Sta9 tistical Manual of Mental Health Disorders, 5th Edi10 tion (or the most current successor edition). 

11 (5) MINOR.—The term ‘‘minor’’ means an indi12 vidual who is under the age of 17. 

13 (6) ONLINE PLATFORM.—The term ‘‘online 

14 platform’’ means any public-facing website, online 

15 service, online application, or mobile application that 

16 predominantly provides a community forum for user 

17 generated content, including sharing videos, images, 

18 games, audio files, or other content. 

19 (7) PARENT.—The term ‘‘parent’’ includes a 

20 legal guardian or an individual with legal custody 

21 over a minor. 

22 (8) PERSONAL DATA.—The term ‘‘personal 

23 data’’ means information that identifies or is linked 

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1 ing a consumer device identifier associated with a 

2 minor. 

3 (9) PERSONALIZED RECOMMENDATION SYS4 TEM.—The term ‘‘personalized recommendation sys5 tem’’ means a fully or partially automated system 

6 used to suggest, promote, or rank information based 

7 on the personal data of users. 

8 (10) SEXUAL EXPLOITATION AND ABUSE.—The 

9 term ‘‘sexual exploitation and abuse’’ means any of 

10 the following: 

11 (A) Coercion and enticement, as described 

12 in section 2422 of title 18, United States Code. 

13 (B) Child sexual abuse material, as de14 scribed in sections 2251, 2252, 2252A, and 

15 2260 of title 18, United States Code. 

16 (C) Trafficking for the production of im17 ages, as described in section 2251A of title 18, 

18 United States Code. 

19 (D) Sex trafficking of children, as de20 scribed in section 1591 of title 18, United 

21 States Code. 

22 (11) TARGETED ADVERTISING.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘targeted ad24 vertising’’ means displaying an advertisement to 

25 an individual where the advertisement is seVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:53 May 10, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1409.IS S1409

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1 lected based on personal data about the indi2 vidual to predict the individual’s preferences 

3 and interests. 

4 (B) EXCLUSIONS.—Such term does not in5 clude— 

6 (i) advertising or marketing directed 

7 to an individual in response to the individ8 ual’s request for information or express se9 lection of a product or service; 

10 (ii) contextual advertising where an 

11 advertisement is displayed to an individual 

12 based on the content in which the adver13 tisement appears and does not vary based 

14 on who the individual is; or 

15 (iii) processing personal data solely to 

16 measure or report advertising performance, 

17 reach, or frequency. 

18 SEC. 3. DUTY OF CARE. 

19 (a) PREVENTION OF HARM TO MINORS.—A covered 

20 platform shall act in the best interests of a user that the 

21 platform knows or reasonably should know is a minor by 

22 taking reasonable measures in its design and operation of 

23 products and services to prevent and mitigate the fol24 lowing: 


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1 (1) Consistent with evidence-informed medical 

2 information, the following mental health disorders: 

3 anxiety, depression, eating disorders, substance use 

4 disorders, and suicidal behaviors. 

5 (2) Patterns of use that indicate or encourage 

6 addiction-like behaviors. 

7 (3) Physical violence, online bullying, and har8 assment of the minor. 

9 (4) Sexual exploitation and abuse. 

10 (5) Promotion and marketing of narcotic drugs 

11 (as defined in section 102 of the Controlled Sub12 stances Act (21 U.S.C. 802)), tobacco products, 

13 gambling, or alcohol. 

14 (6) Predatory, unfair, or deceptive marketing 

15 practices, or other financial harms. 

16 (b) LIMITATION.—Nothing in subsection (a) shall be 

17 construed to require a covered platform to prevent or pre18 clude— 

19 (1) any minor from deliberately and independ20 ently searching for, or specifically requesting, con21 tent; or 

22 (2) the covered platform or individuals on the 

23 platform from providing resources for the prevention 

24 or mitigation of suicidal behaviors, substance use, 


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1 and other harms, including evidence-informed infor2 mation and clinical resources. 

3 SEC. 4. SAFEGUARDS FOR MINORS. 

4 (a) SAFEGUARDS FOR MINORS.— 

5 (1) SAFEGUARDS.—A covered platform shall 

6 provide an individual that the covered platform 

7 knows or reasonably should know is a minor with 

8 readily accessible and easy-to-use safeguards to, as 

9 applicable— 

10 (A) limit the ability of other individuals to 

11 communicate with the minor; 

12 (B) prevent other users, whether registered 

13 or not, from viewing the minor’s personal data 

14 collected by or shared on the covered platform, 

15 in particular restricting public access to per16 sonal data; 

17 (C) limit features that increase, sustain, or 

18 extend use of the covered platform by the 

19 minor, such as automatic playing of media, re20 wards for time spent on the platform, notifica21 tions, and other features that result in compul22 sive usage of the covered platform by the minor; 

23 (D) control personalized recommendation 

24 systems, including the right to— 


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1 (i) opt out of such personalized rec2 ommendation systems, while still allowing 

3 the display of content based on a chrono4 logical format; or 

5 (ii) limit types or categories of rec6 ommendations from such systems; and 

7 (E) restrict the sharing of the geolocation 

8 of the minor and provide notice regarding the 

9 tracking of the minor’s geolocation. 

10 (2) OPTIONS.—A covered platform shall provide 

11 an individual that the covered platform knows or 

12 reasonably should know is a minor with readily ac13 cessible and easy-to-use options to— 

14 (A) delete the minor’s account and delete 

15 any personal data collected from, or shared by, 

16 the minor on the covered platform; or 

17 (B) limit the amount of time spent by the 

18 minor on the covered platform. 

19 (3) DEFAULT SAFEGUARD SETTINGS FOR MI20 NORS.—A covered platform shall provide that, in the 

21 case of a user that the platform knows or reasonably 

22 should know is a minor, the default setting for any 

23 safeguard described under paragraph (1) shall be 

24 the option available on the platform that provides 


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1 the most protective level of control that is offered by 

2 the platform over privacy and safety for that user. 

3 (b) PARENTAL TOOLS.— 

4 (1) TOOLS.—A covered platform shall provide 

5 readily accessible and easy-to-use settings for par6 ents to support an individual that the platform 

7 knows or reasonably should know is a minor with re8 spect to the individual’s use of the platform. 

9 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—The parental tools pro10 vided by a covered platform shall include— 

11 (A) the ability to manage a minor’s privacy 

12 and account settings, including the safeguards 

13 and options established under subsection (a), in 

14 a manner that allows parents to— 

15 (i) view the privacy and account set16 tings; and 

17 (ii) in the case of a user that the plat18 form knows or reasonably should know is 

19 a child, change and control the privacy and 

20 account settings; 

21 (B) the ability to restrict purchases and fi22 nancial transactions by the minor, where appli23 cable; and 

24 (C) the ability to view metrics of total time 

25 spent on the platform. 


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1 (3) NOTICE TO MINORS.—A covered platform 

2 shall provide clear and conspicuous notice to an indi3 vidual that the platform knows or reasonably should 

4 know is a minor when tools described in this sub5 section are in effect and what settings or controls 

6 have been applied. 

7 (4) DEFAULT TOOLS.—A covered platform shall 

8 provide that, in the case of a user that the platform 

9 knows or reasonably should know is a child, the tools 

10 described in this subsection shall be enabled by de11 fault. 

12 (c) REPORTING MECHANISM.— 

13 (1) REPORTS SUBMITTED BY PARENTS, MI14 NORS, AND SCHOOLS.—A covered platform shall pro15 vide— 

16 (A) a readily accessible and easy-to-use 

17 means to submit reports to the covered plat18 form of harms to minors; 

19 (B) an electronic point of contact specific 

20 to matters involving harms to a minor; and 

21 (C) confirmation of the receipt of such a 

22 report and a means to track a submitted report. 

23 (2) TIMING.—A covered platform shall establish 

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1 spond to reports in a reasonable and timely manner, 

2 but in no case later than— 

3 (A) 7 days after the receipt of a report, if, 

4 for the most recent calendar year, the platform 

5 averaged more than 10,000,000 active users on 

6 a monthly basis in the United States; 

7 (B) 21 days after the receipt of a report, 

8 if, for the most recent calendar year, the plat9 form averaged less than 10,000,000 active 

10 users on a monthly basis in the United States; 

11 and 

12 (C) notwithstanding subparagraphs (A) 

13 and (B), if the report involves an imminent 

14 threat to the safety of a minor, as promptly as 

15 needed to address the reported threat to safety. 

16 (d) ADVERTISING OF ILLEGAL PRODUCTS.—A cov17 ered platform shall not facilitate the advertising of nar18 cotic drugs (as defined in section 102 of the Controlled 

19 Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802)), tobacco products, gam20 bling, or alcohol to an individual that the covered platform 

21 knows or reasonably should know is a minor. 

22 (e) APPLICATION.— 

23 (1) ACCESSIBILITY.—With respect to safe24 guards and parental controls described under subVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:53 May 10, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1409.IS S1409

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1 sections (a) and (b), a covered platform shall pro2 vide— 

3 (A) information and control options in a 

4 clear and conspicuous manner that takes into 

5 consideration the differing ages, capacities, and 

6 developmental needs of the minors most likely 

7 to access the covered platform and does not en8 courage minors or parents to weaken or disable 

9 safeguards or parental controls; 

10 (B) readily accessible and easy-to-use con11 trols to enable or disable safeguards or parental 

12 controls, as appropriate; and 

13 (C) information and control options in the 

14 same language, form, and manner as the cov15 ered platform provides the product or service 

16 used by minors and their parents. 

17 (2) DARK PATTERNS PROHIBITION.—It shall be 

18 unlawful for any covered platform to design, modify, 

19 or manipulate a user interface of a covered platform 

20 with the purpose or substantial effect of subverting 

21 or impairing user autonomy, decision-making, or 

22 choice in order to weaken or disable safeguards or 

23 parental controls required under this section. 

24 (3) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

25 this section shall be construed to— 


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1 (A) prevent a covered platform from taking 

2 reasonable measures to— 

3 (i) block, detect, or prevent the dis4 tribution of unlawful, obscene, or other 

5 harmful material to minors as described in 

6 section 3(a); or 

7 (ii) block or filter spam, prevent 

8 criminal activity, or protect the security of 

9 a platform or service; or 

10 (B) require the disclosure of a minor’s 

11 browsing behavior, search history, messages, 

12 contact list, or other content or metadata of 

13 their communications. 

14 SEC. 5. DISCLOSURE. 

15 (a) NOTICE.— 

16 (1) REGISTRATION.—Prior to registration or 

17 purchase of a covered platform by an individual that 

18 the platform knows or reasonably should know is a 

19 minor, the platform shall provide clear, conspicuous, 

20 and easy-to-understand— 

21 (A) notice of the policies and practices of 

22 the covered platform with respect to personal 

23 data and safeguards for minors; 


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1 (B) information about how to access the 

2 safeguards and parental tools required under 

3 section 4; and 

4 (C) notice about whether the covered plat5 form, including any personalized recommenda6 tion systems used by the platform, pose any 

7 heightened risks of harms to minors. 

8 (2) PARENTAL NOTIFICATION.— 

9 (A) NOTICE AND ACKNOWLEDGMENT.—In 

10 the case of an individual that a covered plat11 form knows or reasonably should know is a 

12 child, the platform shall additionally provide in13 formation about the parental tools and safe14 guards required under section 4 to a parent of 

15 the child and obtain express affirmative ac16 knowledgment from the parent prior to the ini17 tial use of the covered platform by the child. 

18 (B) REASONABLE EFFORT.—A covered 

19 platform shall be deemed to have satisfied the 

20 requirement described in subparagraph (A) if 

21 the covered platform has undertaken a reason22 able effort (taking into consideration available 

23 technology) to ensure a parent receives the in24 formation described in such subparagraph and 


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1 to obtain a parent’s express affirmative ac2 knowledgment. 

3 (3) CONSOLIDATED NOTICES.—A covered plat4 form may consolidate the process for providing in5 formation and (if applicable) obtaining parental ac6 knowledgment as required under this subsection with 

7 its obligations to obtain consent for data privacy 

8 practices, provided the content of the notice meets 

9 the requirements of this subsection. 

10 (4) RULEMAKING.—The Federal Trade Com11 mission may issue rules pursuant to section 553 of 

12 title 5, United States Code, to establish templates or 

13 models of short-form notices that include the min14 imum level of information and labels necessary for 

15 the disclosures required under paragraph (1). 

16 (b) PERSONALIZED RECOMMENDATION SYSTEM.—A 

17 covered platform that operates personalized recommenda18 tion systems shall set out in its terms and conditions, in 

19 a clear, conspicuous, and easy-to-understand manner— 

20 (1) an overview of how those personalized rec21 ommendation systems are used by the covered plat22 form to provide information to users of the platform 

23 who are minors, including how such systems use the 

24 personal data of minors; and 


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1 (2) information about options for minors or 

2 their parents to control personalized recommenda3 tion systems (including by opting out of such sys4 tems). 

5 (c) ADVERTISING AND MARKETING INFORMATION

6 AND LABELS.— 

7 (1) INFORMATION AND LABELS.—A covered 

8 platform that facilitates advertising aimed at users 

9 that the platform knows or reasonably should know 

10 are minors shall provide clear, conspicuous, and 

11 easy-to-understand information and labels to minors 

12 on advertisements regarding— 

13 (A) the name of the product, service, or 

14 brand and the subject matter of an advertise15 ment; 

16 (B) why the minor is being targeted for a 

17 particular advertisement if the covered platform 

18 engages in targeted advertising, including mate19 rial information about how the minor’s personal 

20 data was used to target the advertisement; and 

21 (C) whether particular media displayed to 

22 the minor is an advertisement or marketing ma23 terial, including disclosure of endorsements of 

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1 cial consideration by other users of the plat2 form. 

3 (2) RULEMAKING.—The Federal Trade Com4 mission may issue rules pursuant to section 553 of 

5 title 5, United States Code, to establish templates or 

6 models of short-form notices that include the min7 imum level of information and labels necessary for 

8 the disclosures required under paragraph (1). 

9 (d) RESOURCES FOR PARENTS AND MINORS.—A cov10 ered platform shall provide to minors and parents clear, 

11 conspicuous, easy-to-understand, and comprehensive infor12 mation in a prominent location regarding— 

13 (1) its policies and practices with respect to 

14 personal data and safeguards for minors; and 

15 (2) how to access the safeguards and tools re16 quired under section 4. 

17 (e) RESOURCES IN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGES.—A 

18 covered platform shall ensure, to the extent practicable, 

19 that the disclosures required by this section are made 

20 available in the same language, form, and manner as the 

21 covered platform provides any product or service used by 

22 minors and their parents. 

23 SEC. 6. TRANSPARENCY. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), not less 

25 frequently than once a year, a covered platform shall issue 


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1 a public report identifying the reasonably foreseeable risk 

2 of material harms to minors and describing the prevention 

3 and mitigation measures taken to address such risk based 

4 on an independent, third-party audit conducted through 

5 reasonable inspection of the covered platform. 

6 (b) SCOPE OF APPLICATION.—The requirements of 

7 this section shall apply to a covered platform if— 

8 (1) for the most recent calendar year, the plat9 form averaged more than 10,000,000 active users on 

10 a monthly basis in the United States; and 

11 (2) the platform predominantly provides a com12 munity forum for user-generated content and discus13 sion, including sharing videos, images, games, audio 

14 files, discussion in a virtual setting, or other content, 

15 such as acting as a social media platform, virtual re16 ality environment, or a social network service. 

17 (c) CONTENT.— 

18 (1) TRANSPARENCY.—The public reports re19 quired of a covered platform under this section shall 

20 include— 

21 (A) an assessment of the extent to which 

22 the platform is likely to be accessed by minors; 

23 (B) a description of the commercial inter24 ests of the covered platform in use by minors; 


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1 (C) an accounting, based on the data held 

2 by the covered platform, of— 

3 (i) the number of individuals using 

4 the covered platform reasonably believed to 

5 be minors in the United States, 

6 disaggregated by the age ranges of 0–5, 6– 

7 9, 10–12, and 13–16; and 

8 (ii) the median and mean amounts of 

9 time spent on the platform by minors in 

10 the United States who have accessed the 

11 platform during the reporting year on a 

12 daily, weekly, and monthly basis, 

13 disaggregated by the age ranges of 0–5, 6– 

14 9, 10–12, and 13–16; 

15 (D) an accounting of total reports received 

16 regarding, and the prevalence (which can be 

17 based on scientifically valid sampling methods 

18 using the content available to the covered plat19 form in the normal course of business) of con20 tent related to, the harms described in section 

21 3(a), disaggregated by category of harm; and 

22 (E) a description of any material breaches 

23 of parental tools or assurances regarding mi24 nors, representations regarding the use of the 


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1 personal data of minors, and other matters re2 garding non-compliance. 

3 (2) SYSTEMIC RISKS ASSESSMENT.—The public 

4 reports required of a covered platform under this 

5 section shall include— 

6 (A) an assessment of the reasonably fore7 seeable risk of harms to minors posed by the 

8 covered platform, including identifying any 

9 other physical, mental, developmental, or finan10 cial harms in addition to those described in sec11 tion 3(a); 

12 (B) an assessment of how recommendation 

13 systems and targeted advertising systems can 

14 contribute to harms to minors; 

15 (C) a description of whether and how the 

16 covered platform uses system design features 

17 that increase, sustain, or extend use of a prod18 uct or service by a minor, such as automatic 

19 playing of media, rewards for time spent, and 

20 notifications; 

21 (D) a description of whether, how, and for 

22 what purpose the platform collects or processes 

23 categories of personal data that may cause rea24 sonably foreseeable risk of harms to minors; 


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1 (E) an evaluation of the efficacy of safe2 guards for minors under section 4, and any 

3 issues in delivering such safeguards and the as4 sociated parental tools; and 

5 (F) an evaluation of any other relevant 

6 matters of public concern over risk of harms to 

7 minors. 

8 (3) MITIGATION.—The public reports required 

9 of a covered platform under this section shall in10 clude— 

11 (A) a description of the safeguards and pa12 rental tools available to minors and parents on 

13 the covered platform; 

14 (B) a description of interventions by the 

15 covered platform when it had or has reason to 

16 believe that harms to minors could occur; 

17 (C) a description of the prevention and 

18 mitigation measures intended to be taken in re19 sponse to the known and emerging risks identi20 fied in its assessment of system risks, including 

21 steps taken to— 

22 (i) prevent harms to minors, including 

23 adapting or removing system design fea24 tures or addressing through parental con25 trols; 


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1 (ii) provide the most protective level of 

2 control over privacy and safety by default; 

3 and 

4 (iii) adapt recommendation systems to 

5 prioritize the best interests of users who 

6 are minors, as described in section 3(a); 

7 (D) a description of internal processes for 

8 handling reports and automated detection 

9 mechanisms for harms to minors, including the 

10 rate, timeliness, and effectiveness of responses 

11 under the requirement of section 4(c); 

12 (E) the status of implementing prevention 

13 and mitigation measures identified in prior as14 sessments; and 

15 (F) a description of the additional meas16 ures to be taken by the covered platform to ad17 dress the circumvention of safeguards for mi18 nors and parental tools. 

19 (d) REASONABLE INSPECTION.—In conducting an in20 spection of the systemic risks of harm to minors under 

21 this section, an independent, third-party auditor shall— 

22 (1) take into consideration the function of rec23 ommendation systems; 

24 (2) consult parents and youth experts, including 

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1 perience, public health and mental health nonprofit 

2 organizations, health and development organizations, 

3 and civil society with respect to the prevention of 

4 harms to minors; 

5 (3) conduct research based on experiences of 

6 minors that use the covered platform, including re7 ports under section 4(c) and information provided by 

8 law enforcement; 

9 (4) take account of research, including research 

10 regarding system design features, marketing, or 

11 product integrity, industry best practices, or outside 

12 research; and 

13 (5) consider indicia or inferences of age of 

14 users, in addition to any self-declared information 

15 about the age of individuals. 

16 (e) COOPERATION WITH INDEPENDENT, THIRD17 PARTY AUDIT.—To facilitate the report required by sub18 section (c), a covered platform shall— 

19 (1) provide or otherwise make available to the 

20 independent third-party conducting the audit all in21 formation and material in its possession, custody, or 

22 control that is relevant to the audit; 

23 (2) provide or otherwise make available to the 

24 independent third-party conducting the audit access 


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1 to all network, systems, and assets relevant to the 

2 audit; and 

3 (3) disclose all relevant facts to the independent 

4 third-party conducting the audit, and not misrepre5 sent in any manner, expressly or by implication, any 

6 relevant fact. 

7 (f) PRIVACY SAFEGUARDS.— 

8 (1) In issuing the public reports required under 

9 this section, a covered platform shall take steps to 

10 safeguard the privacy of its users, including ensur11 ing that data is presented in a de-identified, aggre12 gated format such that it is reasonably impossible 

13 for the data to be linked back to any individual user. 

14 (2) This section shall not be construed to re15 quire the disclosure of information that will lead to 

16 material vulnerabilities for the privacy of users or 

17 the security of a covered platform’s service or create 

18 a significant risk of the violation of Federal or State 

19 law. 

20 (g) LOCATION.—The public reports required under 

21 this section should be posted by a covered platform on an 

22 easy to find location on a publicly available website. 

23 SEC. 7. INDEPENDENT RESEARCH. 

24 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 (1) ASSISTANT SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Assist2 ant Secretary’’ means the Assistant Secretary of 

3 Commerce for Communications and Information. 

4 (2) DE-IDENTIFIED DATA.—The term ‘‘de-iden5 tified data’’ means information— 

6 (A) that does not identify and is not linked 

7 or reasonably linkable to an individual or an in8 dividual’s device; and 

9 (B) with respect to which a covered plat10 form or researcher takes reasonable technical 

11 and contractual measures to ensure that the in12 formation is not used to re-identify any indi13 vidual or individual’s device. 

14 (3) ELIGIBLE RESEARCHER.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘eligible re16 searcher’’ means an individual or group of indi17 viduals affiliated with or employed by— 

18 (i) an institution of higher education 

19 (as defined in section 101 of the Higher 

20 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)); 

21 or 

22 (ii) a nonprofit organization described 

23 in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Rev24 enue Code of 1986. 


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1 (B) LIMITATION.—Such term shall not in2 clude an individual or group of individuals that 

3 is— 

4 (i) not located in the United States; 

5 or 

6 (ii) affiliated with the government of a 

7 foreign adversary (as defined in section 

8 8(c)(2) of the Secure and Trusted Commu9 nications Networks Act of 2019 (47 U.S.C. 

10 1607(c)(2))). 

11 (4) INDEPENDENT RESEARCH.—The term 

12 ‘‘independent research’’ means the scientific or his13 torical analysis of information that is performed for 

14 the primary purpose of advancing understanding, 

15 knowledge, and remedies regarding the harms to mi16 nors described in section 3(a). 

17 (5) NONCOMMERCIAL PURPOSE.—The term 

18 ‘‘noncommercial purpose’’ means a purpose that 

19 does not involve any direct or indirect use of data 

20 sets for the sale, resale, solicitation, rental, or lease 

21 of a service, or any use by which the user expects 

22 a profit, including the sale to the general public of 

23 a publication containing independent research. 

24 (6) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘Program’’ means 

25 the program established under subsection (b)(1). 


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1 (7) QUALIFIED RESEARCHER.—The term 

2 ‘‘qualified researcher’’ means an eligible researcher 

3 who is approved by the Assistant Secretary to con4 duct independent research regarding harms to mi5 nors under the Program. 

6 (b) INDEPENDENT RESEARCH PROGRAM RELATING

7 TO IDENTIFIED HARMS TO MINORS.— 

8 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Subject to paragraph 

9 (2), the Assistant Secretary shall establish a pro10 gram, with public notice and an opportunity to com11 ment, under which an eligible researcher may apply 

12 for, and a covered platform shall provide, access to 

13 data sets from the covered platform for the sole pur14 pose of conducting independent research regarding 

15 the harms described in section 3(a). 

16 (2) SCOPE OF APPLICATION.—The require17 ments of this subsection shall apply to a covered 

18 platform if— 

19 (A) for the most recent calendar year, the 

20 platform averaged more than 10,000,000 active 

21 users on a monthly basis in the United States; 

22 and 

23 (B) the platform predominantly provides a 

24 community forum for user generated content 

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1 ages, games, audio files, discussion in a virtual 

2 setting, or other content, such as acting as a 

3 social media platform, virtual reality environ4 ment, or social network service. 

5 (3) PROCESSES, PROCEDURES, AND STAND6 ARDS.—Not later than 1 year after the date of en7 actment of this Act, the Assistant Secretary shall es8 tablish for the program established under this sub9 section— 

10 (A) definitions for data sets (related to 

11 harms described in section 3(a)) that qualify for 

12 disclosure to researchers under the program 

13 and standards of access for data sets to be pro14 vided under the program; 

15 (B) a process by which an eligible re16 searcher may submit an application described in 

17 paragraph (1); 

18 (C) an appeals process for eligible re19 searchers to appeal adverse decisions on appli20 cations described in paragraph (1) (including a 

21 decision to grant an appeal under paragraph 

22 (4)(C)); 

23 (D) procedures for implementation of the 

24 program, including methods for— 

25 (i) participation by covered platforms; 


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1 (ii) evaluation of researcher proposals 

2 for alignment with program objectives and 

3 scoping; and 

4 (iii) verification by the Assistant Sec5 retary of the credentials of eligible re6 searchers and processes for the application 

7 or disqualification to participate in the pro8 gram; 

9 (E) standards for privacy, security, and 

10 confidentiality required to participate in the 

11 program, including rules to ensure that the pri12 vacy and safety of users is not infringed by the 

13 program; 

14 (F) a mechanism to allow individuals to 

15 control the use of their personal data under the 

16 program, including the ability to opt out of the 

17 program; 

18 (G) standards for transparency regarding 

19 the operation and administration of the pro20 gram; and 

21 (H) rules to prevent requests for data sets 

22 that present financial conflicts of interest, in23 cluding efforts by covered platforms to gain a 

24 competitive advantage by directly funding data 

25 access requests, the use of qualified researcher 


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1 status for commercial gain, or efforts by cov2 ered platforms to obtain access to intellectual 

3 property that is otherwise protected by law. 

4 (4) DUTIES AND RIGHTS OF COVERED PLAT5 FORMS.— 

6 (A) ACCESS TO DATA SETS.— 

7 (i) IN GENERAL.—If the Assistant 

8 Secretary approves an application under 

9 paragraph (1) with respect to a covered 

10 platform, the covered platform shall, in a 

11 timely manner, provide the qualified re12 searcher with access to data sets necessary 

13 to conduct independent research described 

14 in that paragraph. 

15 (ii) LIMITATIONS.—Nothing in this 

16 section shall be construed to require a cov17 ered platform to provide access to data 

18 sets that are intellectual property protected 

19 by Federal law, trade secrets, or commer20 cial or financial information. 

21 (iii) FORM OF ACCESS.—A covered 

22 platform shall provide to a qualified re23 searcher access to data sets under clause 

24 (i) through online databases, application 


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1 programming interfaces, and data files as 

2 appropriate. 

3 (B) NONDISCLOSURE AGREEMENT.—A 

4 covered platform may require, as a condition of 

5 access to the data sets of the covered platform, 

6 that a qualified researcher enter into a non7 disclosure agreement restricting the release of 

8 data sets, provided that— 

9 (i) the agreement does not restrict the 

10 publication or discussion regarding the 

11 qualified researcher’s findings; and 

12 (ii) the terms of the agreement allow 

13 the qualified researcher to provide the 

14 original agreement or a copy of the agree15 ment to the Assistant Secretary. 

16 (C) APPEAL.— 

17 (i) AGENCY APPEAL.—A covered plat18 form may appeal the granting of an appli19 cation under paragraph (1) on the grounds 

20 that, and the Assistant Secretary shall 

21 grant such appeal if— 

22 (I) the covered platform does not 

23 have access to the requested data sets 

24 or the requested data sets are not rea25 sonably tailored to application; or 


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1 (II) providing access to the data 

2 sets will lead to material 

3 vulnerabilities for the privacy of users 

4 or the security of the covered plat5 form’s service or create a significant 

6 risk of the violation of Federal or 

7 state law. 

8 (ii) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—A decision of 

9 the Assistant Secretary with respect to an 

10 appeal under clause (i) shall be considered 

11 to be a final agency action for purposes of 

12 judicial review under chapter 7 of title 5, 

13 United States Code. 

14 (iii) ALTERNATIVE MEANS OF FUL15 FILLMENT.—As part of an appeal under 

16 clause (i) that is made on the basis of sub17 clause (II) of such clause, a covered plat18 form shall propose one or more alternative 

19 data sets or means of accessing the re20 quested data sets that are appropriate and 

21 sufficient to fulfill the purpose of the appli22 cation, or shall explain why there are no 

23 alternative data sets or means of access 

24 which acceptably mitigate the applicable 

25 privacy, security, or legal concerns. 


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1 (D) TIMING.—A covered platform for 

2 which this provision applies shall participate in 

3 the program established under this subsection 

4 no later than two years after enactment of this 

5 Act. 

6 (5) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—In order to 

7 be approved to access data sets from a covered plat8 form, an eligible researcher shall, in the application 

9 submitted under paragraph (1)— 

10 (A) explain the purpose for which the inde11 pendent research is undertaken; 

12 (B) commit to conduct the research for 

13 noncommercial purposes; 

14 (C) demonstrate a proven record of exper15 tise on the proposed research topic and related 

16 research methodologies; 

17 (D) if the eligible researcher is seeking ac18 cess to data sets that include personal data, ex19 plain why the data sets are requested, and the 

20 means through which such data sets shall be 

21 accessed are the least sensitive and the most 

22 privacy-protective means that will permit com23 pletion of the research and not compromise the 

24 privacy or safety of users; and 


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1 (E) commit to fulfill, and demonstrate a 

2 capacity to fulfill, the specific data security and 

3 confidentiality requirements corresponding to 

4 the application. 

5 (6) PRIVACY AND DUTY OF CONFIDEN6 TIALITY.— 

7 (A) RESEARCHER CONFIDENTIALITY.—To 

8 protect user privacy, a qualified researcher shall 

9 keep data sets provided by a covered platform 

10 under the program confidential and secure to 

11 the specifications set forth under the program 

12 rules and the approved application. 

13 (B) PLATFORM CONFIDENTIALITY.—A cov14 ered platform shall use reasonable measures to 

15 enable researcher access to data sets under the 

16 program in a secure and privacy-protective 

17 manner, including through the de-identification 

18 of personal data or use of other privacy-enhanc19 ing technologies. 

20 (C) FEDERAL AGENCIES.—Nothing in this 

21 subsection shall be construed to authorize— 

22 (i) a Federal agency to seek access to 

23 the data of a covered platform through the 

24 program; or 


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1 (ii) a qualified researcher to transfer 

2 or share any data sets provided by a cov3 ered platform under the program with a 

4 Federal agency. 

5 (D) SECURITY.—Nothing in this sub6 section shall be construed in a manner that 

7 would result in data sets from a covered plat8 form being transferred to the Government of 

9 the People’s Republic of China or the govern10 ment of another foreign adversary (as defined 

11 in section 8(c)(2) of the Secure and Trusted 

12 Communications Networks Act of 2019 (47 

13 U.S.C. 1607(c)(2))). 

14 (c) SAFE HARBOR FOR COLLECTION OF DATA FOR

15 INDEPENDENT RESEARCH REGARDING IDENTIFIED

16 HARMS TO MINORS.—If, in the course of conducting inde17 pendent research for noncommercial purposes regarding 

18 harms described in section 3(a) (without regard to wheth19 er such research is conducted under the program), an eli20 gible researcher collects or uses data from a covered plat21 form in a manner that violates the terms of service of the 

22 platform, no cause of action based on such violation shall 

23 lie or be maintained in any court against such researcher 

24 unless the violation relates to the failure of the researcher 


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1 to take reasonable measures to protect user privacy and 

2 security. 

3 (d) RULEMAKING.—The Assistant Secretary, in con4 sultation with the Secretary of Commerce, the Director 

5 of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, 

6 the Director of the National Science Foundation, and the 

7 Director of the National Institutes of Health shall promul8 gate rules in accordance with section 553 of title 5, United 

9 States Code, as necessary to implement this section. 

10 SEC. 8. MARKET RESEARCH. 

11 (a) MARKET RESEARCH BY COVERED PLATFORMS.— 

12 The Federal Trade Commission, in consultation with the 

13 Secretary of Commerce, shall issue guidance for covered 

14 platforms seeking to conduct market- and product-focused 

15 research on minors. Such guidance shall include— 

16 (1) a standard consent form that provides mi17 nors and their parents a clear, conspicuous, and 

18 easy-to-understand explanation of the scope and pur19 pose of the research to be conducted, and provides 

20 an opportunity for informed consent; and 

21 (2) recommendations for research practices for 

22 studies that may include minors, disaggregated by 

23 the age ranges of 0–5, 6–9, 10–12, and 13–16. 

24 (b) TIMING.—The Federal Trade Commission shall 

25 issue such guidance not later than 18 months after the 


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1 date of enactment of this Act. In doing so, they shall seek 

2 input from members of the public and the representatives 

3 of the Kids Online Safety Council established under sec4 tion 12. 

5 SEC. 9. AGE VERIFICATION STUDY AND REPORT. 

6 (a) STUDY.—The Director of the National Institute 

7 of Standards and Technology, in coordination with the 

8 Federal Communications Commission, Federal Trade 

9 Commission, and the Secretary of Commerce, shall con10 duct a study evaluating the most technologically feasible 

11 methods and options for developing systems to verify age 

12 at the device or operating system level. 

13 (b) CONTENTS.—Such study shall consider — 

14 (1) the benefits of creating a device or oper15 ating system level age verification system; 

16 (2) what information may need to be collected 

17 to create this type of age verification system; 

18 (3) the accuracy of such systems and their im19 pact or steps to improve accessibility, including for 

20 individuals with disabilities; 

21 (4) how such a system or systems could verify 

22 age while mitigating risks to user privacy and data 

23 security and safeguarding minors’ personal data, 

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1 lected and processed by covered platforms and age 

2 verification providers for such a system; and 

3 (5) the technical feasibility, including the need 

4 for potential hardware and software changes, includ5 ing for devices currently in commerce and owned by 

6 consumers. 

7 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

8 of enactment of this Act, the agencies described in sub9 section (a) shall submit a report containing the results of 

10 the study conducted under such subsection to the Com11 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

12 Senate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of 

13 the House of Representatives. 

14 SEC. 10. GUIDANCE. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months after 

16 the date of enactment of this Act, the Federal Trade Com17 mission, in consultation with the Kids Online Safety Coun18 cil established under section 12, shall issue guidance to— 

19 (1) provide information and examples for cov20 ered platforms and auditors regarding— 

21 (A) identifying features that are used to 

22 increase, sustain, or extend use of the covered 

23 platform by a minor; 

24 (B) safeguarding minors against the pos25 sible misuse of parental tools; 


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1 (C) best practices in providing minors and 

2 parents the most protective level of control over 

3 privacy and safety; 

4 (D) using indicia or inferences of age of 

5 users for assessing use of the covered platform 

6 by minors; 

7 (E) methods for evaluating the efficacy of 

8 safeguards; and 

9 (F) providing additional control options 

10 that allow parents to address the harms de11 scribed in section 3(a); and 

12 (2) outline conduct that does not have the pur13 pose or substantial effect of subverting or impairing 

14 user autonomy, decision-making, or choice, or of 

15 causing, increasing, or encouraging compulsive usage 

16 for a minor, such as— 

17 (A) de minimis user interface changes de18 rived from testing consumer preferences, includ19 ing different styles, layouts, or text, where such 

20 changes are not done with the purpose of weak21 ening or disabling safeguards or parental con22 trols; 

23 (B) algorithms or data outputs outside the 

24 control of a covered platform; and 


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1 (C) establishing default settings that pro2 vide enhanced privacy protection to users or 

3 otherwise enhance their autonomy and decision4 making ability. 

5 (b) GUIDANCE TO SCHOOLS.—Not later than 18 

6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec7 retary of Education, in consultation with the Federal 

8 Trade Commission and the Kids Online Safety Council es9 tablished under section 12, shall issue guidance to assist 

10 to assist elementary and secondary schools in using the 

11 notice, safeguards and tools provided under this Act and 

12 providing information on online safety for students and 

13 teachers. 

14 (c) LIMITATION ON FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

15 GUIDANCE.— 

16 (1) EFFECT OF GUIDANCE.—No guidance 

17 issued by the Federal Trade Commission with re18 spect to this Act shall— 

19 (A) confer any rights on any person, State, 

20 or locality; or 

21 (B) operate to bind the Federal Trade 

22 Commission or any person to the approach rec23 ommended in such guidance. 


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1 (2) USE IN ENFORCEMENT ACTIONS.—In any 

2 enforcement action brought pursuant to this Act, the 

3 Federal Trade Commission— 

4 (A) shall allege a violation of a provision of 

5 this Act; and 

6 (B) may not base such enforcement action 

7 on, or execute a consent order based on, prac8 tices that are alleged to be inconsistent with 

9 guidance issued by the Federal Trade Commis10 sion with respect to this Act, unless the prac11 tices are alleged to violate a provision of this 

12 Act. 

13 SEC. 11. ENFORCEMENT. 

14 (a) ENFORCEMENT BY FEDERAL TRADE COMMIS15 SION.— 

16 (1) UNFAIR AND DECEPTIVE ACTS OR PRAC17 TICES.—A violation of this Act or a regulation pro18 mulgated under this Act shall be treated as a viola19 tion of a rule defining an unfair or deceptive act or 

20 practice prescribed under section 18(a)(1)(B) of the 

21 Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 

22 57a(a)(1)(B)). 

23 (2) POWERS OF THE COMMISSION.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Federal Trade 

25 Commission (referred to in this section as the 


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•S 1409 IS

1 ‘‘Commission’’) shall enforce this Act and any 

2 regulation promulgated under this Act in the 

3 same manner, by the same means, and with the 

4 same jurisdiction, powers, and duties as though 

5 all applicable terms and provisions of the Fed6 eral Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et 

7 seq.) were incorporated into and made a part of 

8 this Act. 

9 (B) PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES.—Any 

10 person that violates this Act or a regulation 

11 promulgated under this Act shall be subject to 

12 the penalties, and entitled to the privileges and 

13 immunities, provided in the Federal Trade 

14 Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.). 

15 (3) AUTHORITY PRESERVED.—Nothing in this 

16 Act shall be construed to limit the authority of the 

17 Commission under any other provision of law. 

18 (b) ENFORCEMENT BY STATE ATTORNEYS GEN19 ERAL.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

21 (A) CIVIL ACTIONS.—In any case in which 

22 the attorney general of a State has reason to 

23 believe that an interest of the residents of that 

24 State has been or is threatened or adversely af25 fected by the engagement of any person in a 


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1 practice that violates this Act or a regulation 

2 promulgated under this Act, the State, as 

3 parens patriae, may bring a civil action on be4 half of the residents of the State in a district 

5 court of the United States or a State court of 

6 appropriate jurisdiction to— 

7 (i) enjoin that practice; 

8 (ii) enforce compliance with this Act 

9 or such regulation; 

10 (iii) on behalf of residents of the 

11 State, obtain damages, restitution, or other 

12 compensation, each of which shall be dis13 tributed in accordance with State law; or 

14 (iv) obtain such other relief as the 

15 court may consider to be appropriate. 

16 (B) NOTICE.— 

17 (i) IN GENERAL.—Before filing an ac18 tion under subparagraph (A), the attorney 

19 general of the State involved shall provide 

20 to the Commission— 

21 (I) written notice of that action; 

22 and 

23 (II) a copy of the complaint for 

24 that action. 

25 (ii) EXEMPTION.— 


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1 (I) IN GENERAL.—Clause (i) 

2 shall not apply with respect to the fil3 ing of an action by an attorney gen4 eral of a State under this paragraph 

5 if the attorney general of the State 

6 determines that it is not feasible to 

7 provide the notice described in that 

8 clause before the filing of the action. 

9 (II) NOTIFICATION.—In an ac10 tion described in subclause (I), the at11 torney general of a State shall provide 

12 notice and a copy of the complaint to 

13 the Commission at the same time as 

14 the attorney general files the action. 

15 (2) INTERVENTION.— 

16 (A) IN GENERAL.—On receiving notice 

17 under paragraph (1)(B), the Commission shall 

18 have the right to intervene in the action that is 

19 the subject of the notice. 

20 (B) EFFECT OF INTERVENTION.—If the 

21 Commission intervenes in an action under para22 graph (1), it shall have the right— 

23 (i) to be heard with respect to any 

24 matter that arises in that action; and 

25 (ii) to file a petition for appeal. 


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1 (3) CONSTRUCTION.—For purposes of bringing 

2 any civil action under paragraph (1), nothing in this 

3 Act shall be construed to prevent an attorney gen4 eral of a State from exercising the powers conferred 

5 on the attorney general by the laws of that State 

6 to— 

7 (A) conduct investigations; 

8 (B) administer oaths or affirmations; or 

9 (C) compel the attendance of witnesses or 

10 the production of documentary and other evi11 dence. 

12 (4) ACTIONS BY THE COMMISSION.—In any 

13 case in which an action is instituted by or on behalf 

14 of the Commission for violation of this Act or a reg15 ulation promulgated under this Act, no State may, 

16 during the pendency of that action, institute a sepa17 rate action under paragraph (1) against any defend18 ant named in the complaint in the action instituted 

19 by or on behalf of the Commission for that violation. 

20 (5) VENUE; SERVICE OF PROCESS.— 

21 (A) VENUE.—Any action brought under 

22 paragraph (1) may be brought in— 

23 (i) the district court of the United 

24 States that meets applicable requirements 


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•S 1409 IS

1 relating to venue under section 1391 of 

2 title 28, United States Code; or 

3 (ii) a State court of competent juris4 diction. 

5 (B) SERVICE OF PROCESS.—In an action 

6 brought under paragraph (1) in a district court 

7 of the United States, process may be served 

8 wherever defendant— 

9 (i) is an inhabitant; or 

10 (ii) may be found. 

11 SEC. 12. KIDS ONLINE SAFETY COUNCIL. 

12 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days after 

13 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Com14 merce shall establish and convene the Kids Online Safety 

15 Council for the purpose of providing advice on matters re16 lated to this Act. 

17 (b) PARTICIPATION.—The Kids Online Safety Coun18 cil shall include diverse participation from— 

19 (1) academic experts, health professionals, and 

20 members of civil society with expertise in mental 

21 health, substance use disorders, and the prevention 

22 of harms to minors; 

23 (2) representatives in academia and civil society 

24 with specific expertise in privacy and civil liberties; 

25 (3) parents and youth representation; 


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1 (4) representatives of covered platforms; 

2 (5) representatives of the National Tele3 communications and Information Administration, 

4 the National Institute of Standards and Technology, 

5 the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of 

6 Justice, and the Department of Health and Human 

7 Services; 

8 (6) State attorneys general or their designees 

9 acting in State or local government; and 

10 (7) representatives of communities of socially 

11 disadvantaged individuals (as defined in section 8 of 

12 the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637)). 

13 (c) ACTIVITIES.—The matters to be addressed by the 

14 Kids Online Safety Council shall include— 

15 (1) identifying emerging or current risks of 

16 harms to minors associated with online platforms; 

17 (2) recommending measures and methods for 

18 assessing, preventing, and mitigating harms to mi19 nors online; 

20 (3) recommending methods and themes for con21 ducting research regarding online harms to minors; 

22 and 

23 (4) recommending best practices and clear, con24 sensus-based technical standards for transparency 

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1 cluding methods, criteria, and scope to promote 

2 overall accountability. 

3 SEC. 13. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

4 Except as otherwise provided in this Act, this Act 

5 shall take effect on the date that is 18 months after the 

6 date of enactment of this Act. 

7 SEC. 14. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION AND OTHER MATTERS. 

8 (a) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS.—Nothing in 

9 this Act shall be construed to— 

10 (1) preempt section 444 of the General Edu11 cation Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g, commonly 

12 known as the ‘‘Family Educational Rights and Pri13 vacy Act of 1974’’) or other Federal or State laws 

14 governing student privacy; 

15 (2) preempt the Children’s Online Privacy Pro16 tection Act of 1998 (15 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.) or any 

17 rule or regulation promulgated under such Act; or 

18 (3) authorize any action that would conflict 

19 with section 18(h) of the Federal Trade Commission 

20 Act (15 U.S.C. 57a(h)). 

21 (b) PROTECTIONS FOR PRIVACY.—Nothing in this 

22 Act shall be construed to require— 

23 (1) the affirmative collection of any personal 

24 data with respect to the age of users that a covered 


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1 platform is not already collecting in the normal 

2 course of business; or 

3 (2) a covered platform to implement an age 

4 gating or age verification functionality. 

5 (c) COMPLIANCE.—Nothing in this Act shall be con6 strued to restrict a covered platform’s ability to— 

7 (1) cooperate with law enforcement agencies re8 garding activity that the covered platform reasonably 

9 and in good faith believes may violate Federal, 

10 State, or local laws, rules, or regulations; 

11 (2) comply with a civil, criminal, or regulatory 

12 inquiry or any investigation, subpoena, or summons 

13 by Federal, State, local, or other government au14 thorities; or 

15 (3) investigate, establish, exercise, respond to, 

16 or defend against legal claims. 

17 SEC. 15. SEVERABILITY. 

18 If any provision of this Act, or an amendment made 

19 by this Act, is determined to be unenforceable or invalid, 

20 the remaining provisions of this Act and the amendments 

21 made by this Act shall not be affected. 

Æ 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB