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Sunday, November 24, 2024

Senate set to vote on updated children's online privacy act

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Senator Bill Cassidy | Sen. Bill Cassidy Official Website

Senator Bill Cassidy | Sen. Bill Cassidy Official Website

U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) and Edward Markey (D-MA) issued a statement following Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer's (D-NY) announcement that the Senate would vote on their bicameral Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0) this week.

“For far too long, as children and teens suffered from a devastating mental health crisis, driven, in part, by Big Tech, Congress sat back and did nothing. That ends this week when the Senate votes on COPPA 2.0. Our bipartisan, bicameral legislation has been intensely vetted, has strong support on both sides of the aisle, and directly targets Big Tech’s underlying incentive to keep young people scrolling, clicking, and liking for as long as possible. With this vote, the Senate has a critical opportunity to send a message to Big Tech and put an end to the relentless targeting and tracking of kids and teens online. We commend Leader Schumer for taking up this legislation and urge all our colleagues to vote yes.”

COPPA 2.0 aims to modernize and strengthen the existing Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which was passed in 1998 to institute basic privacy protections for users under age 13. The original COPPA included notice and parental consent requirements but is now considered outdated due to significant changes in the online landscape.

The updated legislation is supported by over 100 organizations including the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Federation of Teachers, American Psychological Association, Center for Digital Democracy, Common Sense Media, Design It For Us, Eating Disorders Coalition for Research Policy & Action, Fairplay, National Education Association, National Parent Teacher Association, and U.S. PIRG.

In May 2023, Cassidy and Markey reintroduced COPPA 2.0 with the aim of updating online data privacy rules for children and teenagers in the digital age. The Senate Commerce Science and Transportation Committee unanimously passed COPPA 2.0 in July 2023. In February 2024 Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Ted Cruz (R-TX), Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate Commerce Science & Transportation Committee respectively agreed to cosponsor COPPA 2.0. In April 2024 Representative Tim Walberg (R-MI-05) and Representative Kathy Castor (D-FL-14) introduced the House companion bill.

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