KIDS Act
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| Long title | To protect children and teens online, empower parents and strengthen families, and for other purposes. |
|---|---|
| Acronyms (colloquial) | KIDS Act |
| Announced in | the 119th United States Congress |
| Sponsored by | House: Brett Guthrie |
| Number of co-sponsors | House: 1 |
| Legislative history | |
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The Kids Internet and Digital Safety Act (KIDS Act) is proposed legislation in the United States first introduced in March 2026.[1] The bill includes parts of legislation such as the Kids Online Safety Act, the SCREEN Act, SAFE BOTS Act, COPPA 2.0, the SPY Kids Act, and more.[2] Notably, it removed provisions from the Kids Online Safety Act that required a duty of care system, but would still require large-scale age verification across social platforms.[3]
Though it is meant to ensure child safety on social networking websites, advocates such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation argue that systems’ relying on government-issued identification or biometric age estimation could chill anonymous speech by discouraging users from sharing sensitive information online.[3]
History
In December 2025, Representative Gus Bilirakis introduced the Kids Internet and Digital Safety (KIDS) Act, which incorporated KOSA and other proposed legislation dealing with use of Internet, social media, and artificial intelligence chatbots by minors. In addition to the KOSA provisions, KIDS would mandate age verification for accessing mature content, require services to implement rigorous controls for accounts belonging to minors, and other similar steps. The bill progressed out of the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee in March 2026.[4] It was introduced again to the House of Representatives by Brett Guthrie on March 3, 2026, and co-sponsored by Frank Pallone on June 23, 2026. It was passed by the House of Representatives on June 29, 2026, by a 267–117 vote.[3][5]
In June 2026, the House Energy and Commerce Committee reached a bipartisan agreement on an updated version of KOSA, which did not include a "duty of care" standard and included language that would preempt certain state laws concerning child online safety, to be included as part of the KIDS Act.[6][7][8]
Reception
In May 2026, 44 attorney generals signed a letter in opposition to the act.[9]
See also
References
- ↑ Rep. Guthrie, Brett [R-KY-2 (June 29, 2026). "Text - H.R.7757 - 119th Congress (2025-2026): KIDS Act". www.congress.gov. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ↑ Frieth, Dan (June 23, 2026). "The KIDS Act: A Bipartisan Mass Surveillance Megabill". Reclaim The Net: Free Speech, Privacy, Digital Rights. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Kids online safety package clears House, drawing warnings from digital rights and tech groups". NBC News. June 30, 2026. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
- ↑ Ng, Alfred; Reader, Ruth (March 5, 2026). "House committee advances kids' online safety and privacy proposals". Politico. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
- ↑ Rep. Guthrie, Brett [R-KY-2 (June 29, 2026). "Actions - H.R.7757 - 119th Congress (2025-2026): KIDS Act". www.congress.gov. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ↑ Rozen, Courtney (June 22, 2026). "US House committee reaches bipartisan deal on social media rules for youth". Reuters. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
- ↑ Miller, Gabby (June 26, 2026). "Key Democrats urge House to reject kids' safety proposal". POLITICO. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
- ↑ Dahlkamp, Owen; Brugger, Kelsey (June 22, 2026). "Lawmakers cement bipartisan deal for kids online safety package". POLITICO. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
- ↑ "'Wolf in sheep's clothing:' Jay Jones joins dozens of AGs in opposing online KIDS Act". News 3 WTKR Norfolk. May 27, 2026. Retrieved August 20, 2026.