House lawmakers have announced that they will vote on Monday on a kids’ online safety package, but this package has left out the Senate version’s central accountability provision: a legal duty requiring covered platforms to exercise reasonable care to prevent and mitigate harms to minors. The Senate’s version of the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) specifically includes that essential “duty of care”, but the current House package explicitly rejects this important provision.  

The bishops have warned that omitting this requirement weakens protections for children, noting that “as with any regulated industry that caters to children, it is incumbent upon developers to be proactive in the design of their products to prevent foreseeable harms. Each child is created in the image and likeness of God, deserving of love, protection, and the freedom to grow in a healthy and secure environment.”

Children should not be treated merely as data points or revenue sources, but as vulnerable human beings with real needs and rights.

Tell your member of Congress: any final House bipartisan agreement on KOSA must include the Senate’s duty of care standard. Kids need more than voluntary policies and vague promises. They need real accountability that requires platforms to build safety into the design and operation of their products. Congress should not settle for a weaker House approach when the Senate has already shown there is bipartisan support for stronger protections.