Senate advances KOSA unanimously Aug. 5

The Senate Commerce Committee voted unanimously on August 5 to advance the Kids Online Safety Act, reviving a bipartisan bill that stalled after clearing the Senate last year. The measure would set new federal obligations for platforms used by minors, including social media services, messaging apps, online video games and video streamers. The bill now moves toward a possible full Senate vote as lawmakers race toward the August recess. The House has already passed a separate child-safety package, setting up a likely negotiation if the Senate acts. ### What exactly did the committee approve on August 5? The Senate Commerce Committee’s August 5 executive session listed S. 1748, the Kids Online Safety Act, and the committee later said it advanced “as amended by the Blackburn substitute, as modified.” Chairman Ted Cruz’s office said the bill was part of a package of children’s online safety measures considered that day. CNBC and Politico both reported the KOSA vote was unanimous. (commerce.senate.gov) Ted Cruz said in prepared remarks released by the committee that KOSA, introduced by Sen. Marsha Blackburn with Sen. Richard Blumenthal, would “set guardrails for online platforms used by minors.” Cruz’s office also said the bill had 75 cosponsors and noted that the Senate passed a prior version by a 91-3 vote in the last Congress. CNBC reported 76 cosponsors. That difference appears to reflect a count taken at different points in the bill’s movement. (commerce.senate.gov) ### What would platforms have to do under KOSA? S. 1748 would create a statutory “duty of care,” require safeguards for minors, mandate disclosures and transparency reports, and direct an age-verification study and report, according to the bill text on Congress.gov. The bill’s table of contents also includes a Kids Online Safety Council and a section on effective dates. (commerce.senate.gov) Maria Cantwell, the top Democrat on the committee, said before the vote that the bill “imposes a duty of care on social media platforms so that these companies have to take reasonable care to make sure they are not creating harm and implementing products that harm kids.” CNBC reported the Senate version would apply that requirement to design features that could harm children on platforms including Meta, Snapchat and TikTok. (congress.gov) ### Which services are covered by the bill? Congress.gov’s text says a “covered platform” includes an online platform, online video game, messaging application or video streaming service that connects to the internet and is used, or is reasonably likely to be used, by a minor. The bill defines a child as under 13 and separately addresses minors more broadly through its safeguards and platform obligations. (cnbc.com) The same bill text excludes some services from that definition, including common carriers, broadband internet access service, email, certain teleconferencing or videoconferencing services, and wireless messaging services such as SMS. Those exclusions are part of the bill as introduced on May 14, 2025. ### Why is the House still part of this story? (congress.gov) The House passed H.R. 7757, the KIDS Act, on June 29 by a 267-117 vote, according to Politico. That package includes a House version of KOSA, but Politico reported it omits the Senate bill’s “duty of care” provision, which has become one of the central points of disagreement between the chambers. (congress.gov) CNBC reported the House moved a similar bill more than a month before the Senate committee vote, and said the differences between the two proposals set up a clash between the chambers. Politico reported that age verification, First Amendment concerns and the duty-of-care language are likely to be at the center of any standoff. ### What did Blackburn say as the bill moved? (politico.com) Marsha Blackburn, a Tennessee Republican and one of KOSA’s lead sponsors, spoke during the August 5 committee session as the bill moved forward, according to CNBC’s account of the markup. Cruz’s office described the measure as “Senator Blackburn’s Kids Online Safety Act,” introduced with Blumenthal. (cnbc.com) The next formal step is a Senate floor vote if leadership brings the bill up. If the Senate passes its version, lawmakers would still need to reconcile S. 1748 with the House’s H.R. 7757 before any final measure could go to the president. (cnbc.com)