Houchin pushes social media age minimum after midterms

Rep. Erin Houchin, R-Ind., told reporters Friday she is still working with Rep. Jake Auchincloss, D-Mass., to put a social media age minimum, with parental consent for older teens, into a kids' online safety compromise after the midterms. Her aim is to get both into whatever final package emerges¹.

The push would win back ground the ban lost in committee. Houchin's bill that advanced in committee in early September originally included a full under-16 ban, but it was amended to require parental consent for platforms to process data for users under 16¹. Houchin said that version puts parents in charge².

1. June 29The House passed the KIDS Act.
2. Aug. 5The Senate Commerce Committee advanced KOSA.
3. early SeptemberHouchin's bill was amended to remove the under-16 ban.
4. Sept. 10Houchin and Auchincloss introduced H.R. 10337.

Neither the House-passed KIDS Act nor the Senate committee-forwarded KOSA includes an age minimum or parental consent for older teens, Houchin noted. The House passed the KIDS Act on June 29, and the Senate Commerce Committee advanced KOSA on Aug. 5³. Nor is anyone bargaining over the gap yet. Asked whether negotiations on the subject were happening during the recess, Houchin answered: "Not to my knowledge¹." She added that House Energy and Commerce staff have met Senate counterparts on multiple issues, and she speculated that kids online safety is probably one of them.

The full ban still lives in its own bill. H.R. 10337, the 16 & Up Social Media Act, was introduced Sept. 10 by Houchin with Auchincloss as co-sponsor and was referred to Energy and Commerce. It bars a platform from allowing an under-16 user to hold an account and requires deletion of that user's personal data when the account is terminated⁴.

Houchin says she and Auchincloss will keep seeking a place for the provisions in a final package after the midterms¹.

Sources

1. Houchin looks to push kids social media ban in lame duck – Roll Call
2. Panel punts kids’ social media ban for data consent mandate – Roll Call
3. Kids Online Safety Act – Congressional Research Service
4. H.R. 10337 – 16 & Up Social Media Act, introduced bill text