Parents Decide Act
Rep. Gottheimer and Rep. Stefanik Introduce Parents Decide Act to Require Age Verification on Devices
The Parents Decide Act was recently introduced in the House and is currently being reviewed by the Committee on Energy and Commerce. It is in the early stages of the legislative process and is considered active. There are no upcoming votes scheduled at this time.
Legislative Progress
The bill has strong bipartisan support from prominent members of both parties, but it faces potential hurdles from tech companies concerned about privacy and technical implementation.
Key Points
Impact Analysis
Personal Impact
LGBTQ youth who may not have supportive parents could lose access to online communities, mental health resources, and identity-affirming content if their parent or guardian uses the parental control features to restrict what they can access. The bill gives parents explicit power to control what minors access on their devices, which could be harmful for teens in unsupportive households.
“ensure the parent or legal guardian of a user of an operating system who is under 18 years of age is allowed to control what such user is allowed to access on a device.”
Milestones
Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Introduced in House
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
Votes
No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.
Related News
4 articles
Parents Decide: New bill seeks to strengthen online protections for kids
Rep. Josh Gottheimer unveiled the Parents Decide Act, which would require operating systems like Apple and Google to verify users' ages when setting up new devices. The bill aims to give parents more control over what their kids can access, ensuring age settings flow directly to apps and AI.
Gottheimer unveils bipartisan bill to strengthen online protections for children
The proposed 'Parents Decide Act' would require device makers to verify users' ages during setup and allow parents to set content controls from the start. The bill ensures that age and parental settings carry over to apps and platforms, creating a consistent standard for child safety.
Gottheimer in town on push for child, pet safety
Rep. Gottheimer introduced the bipartisan Parents Decide Act at the Ridgewood YMCA. The legislation requires device manufacturers to verify user ages and set up parental controls on apps and AI systems, addressing vulnerabilities in how children interact with emerging technologies.
Source Information
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
Parents Decide Act
Data Sources
Sponsor
Cosponsors
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