Cruz: Senate Commerce Plans to Move 3 Kids Privacy Bills in 2025
The Senate Commerce Committee plans to hold votes on at least three different kids privacy bills this year, Chairman Ted Cruz, R-Texas, told us Thursday.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
“There are multiple bills that address kids' privacy,” said Cruz. “I expect we’ll move all three of them.”
The committee will consider the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) (S. 1409), the Kids Off Social Media Act (KOSMA) (S. 4213) and the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0) (S. 1418), Cruz told us.
Last April, Cruz introduced KOSMA with Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii. Co-sponsors included Sens. Chris Murphy, D-Conn.; Katie Britt, R-Ala.; and Mark Warner, D-Va. One of the bill’s key privacy provisions would ban social media companies from using data-driven algorithms to serve targeted ads to users younger than 17. The bill would set a minimum age of 13 for social media use. The FTC and state attorneys general would have enforcement authority.
The committee passed KOSA and COPPA 2.0 in July under then-Chair Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., and the Senate approved them 91-3 (see 2407300042). KOSMA didn’t receive a committee vote in 2024, though it was considered for markup. COPPA 2.0 would update the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, a law the FTC enforces.
Now ranking member, Cantwell told us she met with Cruz about kids' privacy and that he wants to make it a “priority.” Cruz and House Commerce Committee Chairman Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., told us previously that kids' privacy has more bipartisan potential than a comprehensive privacy bill (see 2501030039). Guthrie said he’s organizing a working group to determine the path forward on privacy in the lower chamber (see 2501150064). He suggested new legislation could be considered along with the existing bills.
Sens. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., are moving forward with the reintroduction of KOSA, which stalled in the House last year due to opposition from Republican leadership. Blumenthal said he’s focused now on Senate confirmations. He expects KOSA reintroduction “soon,” but there’s no firm timeline.
KOSMA would preempt any state law that conflicts with its provisions. The bill includes data-retention restrictions. As written, companies collecting data to comply could not use it for a “purpose other than for sole compliance with the obligations.” Companies wouldn’t be allowed to retain personal data “for longer than is necessary to comply with the obligations ... or than is minimally necessary to demonstrate compliance.” The bill borrows language from COPPA to define “personal information.”
The bill explicitly states it doesn’t require platforms to implement age-gating or age-verification “functionality,” and doesn’t mandate age-related data collection beyond what companies already gather in the “normal course of business.”
KOSMA drew opposition from more than 30 consumer advocate groups (see 2405160068), including the American Civil Liberties Union, Center for Democracy & Technology, Electronic Frontier Foundation and Public Knowledge. They argued it would harm children’s privacy, safety and First Amendment rights. The measure incentivizes schools to “spy on children,” imposes unconstitutional restrictions on access to online services and undermines existing child protections, they said.