Attorney General Kwame Raoul, alongside a bipartisan coalition of 32 attorneys general, has urged Congress to pass the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) before the year's end. This legislation aims to protect children from online harm amid increasing concerns about youth mental health issues linked to social media usage. The coalition's letter to Congressional leaders highlights studies indicating that minors spend over five hours daily online.
"American children and teenagers are in the grip of a devastating mental health crisis," Raoul stated. "The addictive features on many social media platforms interfere with sleep and education, and contribute to depression, anxiety, body dysmorphia and thoughts of self-harm. I am proud to join my fellow attorneys general in urging Congress to approve the Kids Online Safety Act and require companies to take reasonable steps to protect young people from harm online."
Key aspects of KOSA include mandatory default safety settings that would ensure platforms automatically enable their strongest safety protections for minors. The act also includes addiction prevention provisions allowing users and parents to disable manipulative design features and algorithmic recommendations that encourage prolonged use. Additionally, parental empowerment provisions would equip parents with tools for identifying harmful behaviors and reporting dangerous content.
This call is part of Attorney General Raoul's ongoing efforts to safeguard children online. In October, he announced a lawsuit against TikTok for its alleged harmful business practices targeting children. Previously, in September 2024, Raoul joined a bipartisan group of 42 attorneys general advocating for legislation requiring a U.S. surgeon general warning on all algorithm-driven social media platforms.
In October 2023, Raoul filed a lawsuit against Meta Platforms Inc., supported by several states, accusing it of promoting its social media platform despite associated physical and mental health risks for young users.
The letter urging KOSA's passage was co-signed by attorneys general from Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland Massachusetts Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana New Hampshire New Mexico New York North Dakota Oklahoma Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Utah Vermont Wyoming.