Letter to Senate Leaders on KOSA's Potential Violation of the First Amendment

WASHINGTON, DC – The Senate today passed the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), which would violate the First Amendment by enabling the federal government to dictate what information people can access online and encourage social media platforms to censor protected speech. The House of Representatives must vote no on this dangerous legislation. “KOSA compounds nationwide attacks on young peoples’ right to learn and access information, on and offline,” said Jenna Leventoff, senior policy counsel at the ACLU. “As state legislatures and school boards across the country impose book bans and classroom censorship laws, the last thing students and parents need is another act of government censorship deciding which educational resources are appropriate for their families. The House must block this dangerous bill before it’s too late.” As the ACLU and a wide array of civil rights, civil liberties, and privacy organizations have repeatedly explained, this bill would not keep kids safe, but instead threaten young people’s privacy, limit minors’ access to vital resources, and silence important online conversations for all ages. The ACLU has also raised concerns about how this bill could be used to limit adults' ability to express themselves freely online or access diverse viewpoints. The ACLU is also worried that the government’s attempts to regulate select design features will implicate First Amendment-protected speech. If passed, this legislation would require online platforms that minors are likely to use to take steps to prevent harm. While the revised duty of care requirement supposedly regulates “design features” instead of speech, the list of “design features” are defined so broadly that platforms are likely to censor content that could prove objectionable to the government, which could include anything from sexual health resources to information about gender identity, or how to get help for an eating disorder. This vote comes just days after the ACLU led more than 300 students in a lobbying day on Capitol Hill in opposition to the bill. “It’s called the Kids Online Safety Act, but they have to consider kids’ voices, and some of us don’t think it will make us safer,” said Anjali Verma, a 17-year-old rising high school senior. “We live on the internet, and we are afraid that important information we’ve accessed all our lives will no longer be available. We need lawmakers to listen to young people when making decisions that affect us."