Contact Congress about S. 1748: Kids Online Safety Act
Kids and teens would get stronger default safety settings on many online services. Parents would get more tools for younger children, and users could get clearer choices about personalized feeds.
Modern Action explains legislation in plain English, helps you choose whether to support, oppose, or ask for changes, and drafts a message tied to the bill, your stance, and the elected officials who can act on it.
Kids Online Safety Act is a Senate bill in committee. The latest recorded action: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S2929-2930).
Latest action on S. 1748: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S2929-2930)
Who this affects: This bill mainly affects children, teens, parents, and online services that minors use. Minors would see stronger default safety settings and more controls over privacy, time, and recommendations. Parents of younger children would get more built-in tools. Large platforms would face new reporting, audit, design, and notice duties.
Why this matters: Online safety rules for minors now depend heavily on company choices and state laws. This bill would create one federal baseline for many services that kids and teens use. It could change default settings, feed choices, parent tools, and company reports. Some results would depend on later Federal Trade Commission guidance and how courts apply the bill.
Key provisions in S. 1748
- The bill applies to covered platforms. These include online platforms, online video games, messaging apps, and video streaming services used by minors or likely to be used by minors. It excludes services such as email, basic SMS or MMS texting, most schools and libraries, some news and sports sites, virtual private networks, and government .gov sites.
- The bill defines a child as someone under 13 and a minor as someone under 17. The rules are stronger, and give parents more control, for children than for older minors.
- Platforms would have to use reasonable care when they design features for minors. They must try to prevent or reduce listed harms, such as compulsive use, certain mental health harms linked to use, severe harassment, sexual exploitation, and promotion of narcotic drugs, tobacco, cannabis, gambling, or alcohol.
- Platforms would need high-protection default settings for minors. These settings must limit communication, data sharing, location sharing, and features that push longer use, unless a parent changes them where allowed.
- Minors must get easy tools to limit their time on a platform. Parents must be able to view and limit time and purchases, and those parent tools must be on by default for known children.
How Modern Action helps you take action on S. 1748
You do not have to start with a blank letter. Modern Action turns the bill, your position, and the relevant congressional context into a message you can edit and send. The goal is to make contacting Congress clear, specific, and useful without forcing you to parse bill text or figure out the right office on your own.
Questions people ask about S. 1748
- What is S. 1748?
- Kids and teens would get stronger default safety settings on many online services. Parents would get more tools for younger children, and users could get clearer choices about personalized feeds.
- How do I support or oppose S. 1748?
- Choose support, oppose, or ask for changes on Modern Action. The action flow drafts the message for you and keeps the wording tied to this bill.
- Who should I contact about S. 1748?
- Modern Action uses your location to route the action to the congressional offices relevant to the bill and your representation.
- Can Modern Action explain S. 1748 before I act?
- Yes. Modern Action gives you a plain-English summary, current status, and action context before you send anything.
