On Wednesday, August 6th, 2026, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee advanced five bills focused on online safety and artificial intelligence (AI). Among these were the Shielding Children's Retinas from Egregious Exposure on the Net (SCREEN) Act and the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA). These bills aim to protect minors from harmful online content but have raised concerns among free speech advocates about threats to online privacy and freedom.

Senator Mike Lee (R–Utah) proposed the SCREEN Act, which would require pornography websites to block minors through stringent age verification measures, including IP address verification. The bill asserts that "shielding minors from access to online pornographic content is a compelling government interest" and claims its measures are the "least restrictive means for Congress" to achieve this goal. However, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) warned that such verification would "force millions of adult internet users to give up their anonymity, privacy, and security before they access lawful speech." Despite privacy concerns, the SCREEN Act received majority committee support but did not advance due to lack of quorum.

KOSA, under consideration since 2022, mandates that "covered online platforms" such as social media and video streaming services implement tools and safeguards to protect users under 17. The committee also advanced legislation requiring users under 18 to obtain parental consent before using chatbots and another bill mandating AI companies to implement critical privacy safeguards on chatbots.

Additionally, Representative Ruben Gallego (D–Ariz.) introduced the Parental Approval for Youth Social Media Act. This bill would require social media platforms to obtain parental consent for children creating or maintaining accounts and verify users' ages and parental authorization before allowing minors access. Gallego cited France's ban on social media use for children under 15 as inspiration for the proposal.

Free speech advocates caution that these bills impose duties on platforms to protect users from subjective reactions to constitutionally protected speech, a standard courts have historically rejected on First Amendment grounds.

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