Pennsylvania House members approved legislation Tuesday that would establish age-verification and content-flagging requirements for social media companies. The House Consumer Protection Committee advanced HB-2017 to the floor with a 20-4 vote. Four Republicans voted against, citing privacy and free speech concerns. Introduced by Rep. Brian Munroe (D), the bill would grant the attorney general sole authority to impose penalties against platforms that fail to gain proper age verification and parental consent or fail to flag harmful content for parents. The committee removed a private right of action from the legislation during Tuesday’s markup. Munroe said the bill requires platforms to strengthen age verification by requiring consent from a parent or legal guardian. It also requires that they monitor chats and notify parents of sensitive or graphic content. Once notified, parents can correct the problem, said Rep. Craig Williams (R). Rep. Lisa Borowski (D) called the bill a “small step” toward better protecting young people. Rep. Joe Hogan (R) said legislation shouldn’t increase Big Tech's control over what’s permissible speech, citing data abuse from TikTok. He voted against the bill with fellow Republicans, Reps. Abby Major, Jason Ortitay and Alec Ryncavage. The Computer & Communications Industry Association urged legislators to reject the proposal, saying increased data collection requirements create privacy issues, restrict First Amendment rights and conflict with data minimization principles.
NAB launched a website and ad campaign aimed at helping broadcasters find and hire talent and increase the industry’s diversity and inclusiveness, an NAB news release said Tuesday. Called You Belong Here, the campaign seeks to attract “fresh and diverse talent” and inform job seekers about the variety of careers in broadcasting. The effort includes 30-second customizable spots for broadcasters, a longer video for classrooms and career fairs, and assets for social media and digital ads. Those materials direct candidates to the You Belong Here website. “Our goal is to attract a broad range of talent, showcasing broadcasting as a career that provides unique opportunities to make meaningful contributions to local communities across the country,” said NAB President Curtis LeGeyt in the release.
The House voted 352-65 Wednesday to approve legislation that would ban TikTok in the U.S. if Chinese parent company ByteDance doesn’t divest the app in six months (see 2403120062).
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee (R) aims to avoid industry litigation that has stymied kids’ social media laws in other states, his aide told a Tennessee House committee during a hearing Tuesday on an administration-sponsored bill requiring parental consent for kids younger than 18 on social networks. But afterward, Computer & Communications Industry Association State Director Kara Boender told us her group “still [has] concerns surrounding the bill's provisions.”
The House will vote Wednesday on legislation that would ban TikTok in the U.S. unless Chinese parent company ByteDance divests the popular social media app, an aide for House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., confirmed Tuesday.
Social media companies should obtain parental consent before sending children push notifications that keep them on platforms, a bipartisan group of 43 state attorneys general told the FTC in comments due Monday (see 2312280030). Some tech and telecom groups warned that the FTC's push-notification proposal is likely to be unconstitutional and outside its statutory authority.
If Congress doesn’t approve kids’ online safety legislation, then it should repeal Communications Decency Act Section 230, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., told us last week.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signaled he will sign the legislature’s revised ban restricting kids on social media. Lawmakers approved a revised proposal that includes parental consent after DeSantis vetoed an earlier proposal to ban kids younger than 16 from having social media accounts (see 2403070058). A list of legislative accomplishments this session DeSantis posted on X included “protected children from the harms of social media.” At a Friday news conference alongside the governor, House Speaker Paul Renner (R) said that, with HB-3, “we’ve taken strong action to save our kids and save their childhood.” NetChoice is “disappointed to see Gov. DeSantis sign onto this route,” General Counsel Carl Szabo said. “There are better ways to keep Floridians, their families and their data safe and secure online without violating their freedoms.”
Congress must act now to address national security issues surrounding TikTok, a bipartisan group of senators told us last week leading up to the House Commerce Committee's passage of two TikTok-related bills (see 2403070066). Meanwhile, presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on Thursday defended TikTok, though he signed an executive order against the platform while president.
The Florida legislature passed a second try at restricting kids on social media. The House voted 109-4 to concur with the Senate-amended HB-3 on Wednesday. Lawmakers revised the proposal to include parental consent after Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) vetoed an earlier proposal (see 2403040054). NetChoice sought another veto in a Thursday letter to DeSantis. HB-3 similarly “would violate Floridians’ constitutional rights and place their privacy at risk,” the tech industry group said. DeSantis didn’t comment Thursday. Two other states advanced social media bills Wednesday. The Iowa House voted 88-6 to pass a bill (HF-2523) that would restrict minors younger than 18 from having social media accounts unless they have parental consent. It's now in the Senate. The Arizona Senate voted 16-14 to pass SB-1124, which would require social platforms to publish standards for deplatforming political candidates.