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With Congressional Spotlight on Online Harms, Parent Survivors Urge House to Pass the Kids Online Safety Act This Year
Parents and Advocates Applaud Energy & Commerce Committee’s Attention to Online Harms, But Urge Lawmakers to Act on Proven, Bipartisan Solution
(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – Parents for Safe Online Spaces (ParentsSOS) applauds the House Energy & Commerce Committee for convening a hearing today, March 26, on the urgent and growing threat of online harms to children. As families across the country continue to suffer the consequences of platforms designed to maximize engagement — often at the expense of kids’ safety — this hearing is an important step in keeping the issue front and center in Congress.
While the hearing will examine several legislative proposals, ParentsSOS urges House leadership to prioritize the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), a bipartisan bill that directly targets the design features driving many of the harms under discussion. KOSA was passed last year by the Senate with overwhelming support in a 91–3 vote and has since been further strengthened to address concerns from a wide range of stakeholders. Speaker Mike Johnson himself pledged to bring KOSA to the floor early this year — a promise that parents across the country are still counting on.
Protecting children from online harms is not a political issue — it is a family issue. As long as tech companies continue to prioritize engagement and revenue over safety, more families will face the unimaginable. ParentsSOS urges lawmakers to meet this moment with the urgency it deserves, act on their moral responsibility, and pass the Kids Online Safety Act without delay.
Erin Popolo, who lost her daughter to online harms, said: “We’re encouraged to see lawmakers focused on this crisis, but hearings alone won’t save lives. KOSA addresses how platforms are designed to harm, and it does so with overwhelming bipartisan support — a 91–3 vote in the Senate in 2024. It’s been vetted, and it’s ready. Now Congress must show the same courage parents are showing every day and get this bill passed.”
Todd and Mia Minor, who also lost their child to online harms, added: “We’ve sat through hearings like this before. We’ve told our stories, we’ve listened to promises — and still, more children die while tech companies rake in massive profits. KOSA is a rare example of bipartisan unity. It’s ready. Families don’t have the luxury of waiting for the perfect moment — Congress must act now.”
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ParentsSOS, an educational initiative formed by bereaved families to combat online harms, will continue to provide educational resources and advocate for legislative change to protect children online. For more information about ParentsSOS and their mission, visit www.parentssos.org.