A group of 30 states, led by Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti and New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez, is urging Congress to pass the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) by the end of the year. This law aims to protect children from harmful content online, especially as studies show that kids are spending over five hours a day on social media.
Attorney General Torrez stressed that every day Congress delays this law means children continue to face mental health risks from the internet. He criticized Big Tech companies like Meta and Google for spending millions of dollars lobbying against the bill, saying they care more about profits than children’s safety.
The KOSA law would require social media platforms to:
- Automatically activate the best safety settings for minors.
- Give parents the ability to turn off features that encourage endless scrolling.
- Provide tools for parents to spot harmful behavior and report dangerous content.
This push for the law comes as several states are investigating or suing big social media companies like Meta and TikTok for targeting young users.
New Mexico, along with many other states, has signed this letter urging Congress to take action.