Ricketts Celebrates Senate Passage of Historic Online Child Safety Legislation
July 31, 2024
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE) celebrated Senate passage of historic online child safety legislation. The Kids Online Safety Act and Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act passed together in a bipartisan vote of 91-3. Ricketts made the comments while on a conference call with Nebraska media.
“Social media has also created dangers to our young people. Predators target kids online. Videos promote self-harm and eating disorders. Content fosters body image issues. Bullies destroy the mental health of our kids,” Ricketts said. “This week, the Senate took an important step to fix that. We passed two bills that better protect children and teenagers online. They also give parents new tools, safeguards, and needed transparency. When it comes to kids, safety should be the default.”
“Companies in every other industry must take steps to prevent users from being hurt. Social media companies should do the same,” Ricketts continued. “Social media companies should do the same. Our bill makes that a reality.”
Watch the video HERE.
TRANSCRIPT:
Senator Ricketts: “Over the past 20 years, social media platforms have connected people and communities.
“That connectivity is often positive. Yet, we can’t ignore the dangers.
“In recent court filings, the Justice Department claims China has used TikTok to try to undermine American values, push their communist agenda, and spy on Americans.
“We took action to ban China’s ownership of TikTok earlier this year.
“I also banned it entirely on state devices when I was Governor.
“Social media has also created dangers to our young people. Predators target kids online. Videos promote self-harm and eating disorders. Content fosters body image issues. Bullies destroy the mental health of our kids.
“This week, the Senate took an important step to fix that.
“We passed two bills that better protect children and teenagers online. They also give parents new tools, safeguards, and needed transparency.
“When it comes to kids, safety should be the default.
“I co-led the Kids Online Safety Act with Senators Blackburn and Blumenthal. The bill requires social media platforms to put the well-being of children first.
“It requires platforms to provide minors with options to protect their information.
“It gives an option to disable addictive product features and an opt-out of personalized algorithmic recommendations.
“It also creates a duty for online platforms to prevent and mitigate specific dangers to minors.
“This includes content that promotes suicide, eating disorders, substance abuse, sexual exploitation, and illegal products like alcohol.
“Companies in every other industry must take steps to prevent users from being hurt. Social media companies should do the same. Our bill makes that a reality.
“We also passed an updated version of the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act.
“It’s called COPPA 2.0 from Senator Cassidy. The current online privacy laws for children hadn’t been updated in twenty-five years.
“This update was long overdue. It expands the age protections to include teenagers under the age of seventeen.
“It bans targeted advertising toward minors. It limits data collection and strengthen parental controls.
“I encourage the House to pass both these bills and send them to the president’s desk.”