Policy Update: April 2025

Last year, the 118th Congress concluded with noteworthy momentum behind the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0). A suite of privacy and online safety bills were also considered, but failed to gain as much traction. Considering the attention such legislation received, the 119th Congress appears slow to pick up online safety policy. Admittedly, this Congress has been busy with other priorities and may be taking an inventory of paths forward for any online regulation legislation.

Regardless, online safety is still on the radar for some leaders in Congress. In February, the U.S. Senate passed the TAKE IT DOWN Act, led by Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN). TAKE IT DOWN criminalizes the publication of non-consensual intimate images, including deep fakes. The Act has received bipartisan support in both chambers of Congress, and First Lady Melanie Trump has expressed support for the bill as well. A companion bill was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Representatives María Elvira Salazar (R-FL), Madeleine Dean (D-PA), Vern Buchanan (R-FL), Debbie Dingell (D-MI), August Pfluger (R-TX), and Stacey Plaskett (D-VI). On April 8, the House Energy and Commerce Committee held a markup of the TAKE IT DOWN Act, advancing it to the full House of Representatives for a vote. The TAKE IT DOWN Act has glided through both chambers of Congress and is positioned to pass into law this year.

In addition to passing the TAKE IT DOWN Act, leadership in key House committees has signaled a strong interest in technology policy and regulations. The House Committee of Education and Workforce took up the mantle of digital technology safety in an April 1st hearing on the impacts of artificial intelligence on K-12 education. This year, the House Energy and Commerce Committee held two hearings relating to technology policy. On March 26, the Committee held a hearing on online dangers and harms to children, during which Representative Gus Billirakis (R-FL), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade, signalled strong support for advancing children’s online safety legislation. Representative Billirakis has a history of championing online safety legislation, having introduced the House companion to KOSA in the 118th Congress. On April 10th, the Committee held a hearing on artificial intelligence and maintaining American global competitiveness. The hearing was centered mostly on the energy and infrastructure needed to advance AI development in the U.S., but is a clear sign that technology policy is top of mind for many legislators. Brett Guthrie (R-KY), Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, has said he wants to see privacy legislation progress this Congress, an issue that was fraught in previous Congresses. This movement suggests House leadership has an appetite for these issues, but is cautiously exploring the best approach. 

Meanwhile, the FTC published the COPPA rule amendments it adopted in January, which we discussed in our March newsletter. The COPPA rules were last updated more than a decade ago; these rule changes help modernize COPPA safeguards for data of children under age 13. Most of the rule changes take effect in June of this year.