Attorney General Sunday Joins Bipartisan Effort Urging Congress to Pass Kids Online Safety Act
HARRISBURG – Attorney General Dave Sunday joined a bipartisan coalition of 45 attorneys general urging Congress to pass the Senate version of the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), legislation aimed at strengthening online protections for children and teens.
The letter calls on Congress to establish stronger nationwide protections for children online, including establishing minimum safety standards for social media and gaming platforms while preserving states’ authority to enact and enforce laws protecting children from online harms.
Attorney General Sunday has been committed to protecting children online from addictive platforms, bullying, harmful chatbots and other dangerous uses of A.I. and modern technology.
“I am well aware of the very real dangers and extreme stress children encounter online every single day, and am proud to say the great work we have done to keep them safe has only just begun,” Attorney General Sunday said. “As a father, I understand why online spaces and modern tech concerns parents and families. It is well-documented — and known to social media companies — that extended use of social media is harmful. Parents deserve to know they have a strong advocate willing and able to act quickly as new threats emerge. Congress has an opportunity – and a responsibility – to put children first.”
The renewed call for federal legislation follows the recently announced $17 billion multistate settlement with Meta, which requires the company to implement significant safeguards designed to protect users under 18 on Facebook and Instagram. These include daily time limits, restrictions on night-time use, stronger protections against bullying, limits on certain potentially harmful content, and enhanced parental controls.
In their letter, the attorneys general emphasized that the safeguards established through the landmark Meta settlement – while significant – cannot provide consistent protections across the entire technology industry.
The attorneys general also highlighted the importance of KOSA’s Duty of Care provision, which would establish a lasting standard for all social media and gaming platforms that extends beyond the terms of the settlement. Unlike a settlement with an individual company, this legislation would adapt as technologies and platform features evolve, while preserving the states’ ability to develop and enforce additional protections against emerging online harms.
Since 2021, state attorneys general have investigated major social media platforms over concerns about addictive design features and their impacts on children’s mental health. Those investigations led to lawsuits against Meta and other companies, as attorneys general sought to hold platforms accountable for practices that allegedly harmed young users.
Attorney General Dave Sunday joined the effort led by Attorneys General from Hawai’i, Ohio, Tennessee, and Connecticut, along with Attorneys General from Alabama, Alaska, American Samoa, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, District of Columbia, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, U.S. Virgin Islands, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
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