Child Internet Safety Bills a ‘Priority’ for NY Governor

(TNS) — Gov. Kathy Hochul said Wednesday that her “priority” is to push for legislation that would stop social media companies from collecting personal data from children and also stop them from using addictive resources to keep new users online.

The two bills – the Ban on the Use of Addictive Feeds to Children Act and the Children’s Data Protection Act – have drawn fierce opposition from Big Tech companies, which have also sought to arm their lobbying and advocacy cause with a a number of well-established nonprofits representing the interests of immigrants, minorities, youth, and LGBTQ New Yorkers.

“It’s my priority to get these nation-leading bills passed before the Legislature goes home, and we’re making progress,” Hochul said during a news conference at the Capitol. “Parents, everyone from babies to 18-year-olds, are worried about the uncontrolled world of social media influences and… the uncertain future that awaits us if we don’t put the brakes on it now.”


Multiple lawmakers familiar with the negotiations said earlier Times Union Internet security measures are expected to pass overwhelmingly in both the House and the Senate.

“These algorithms are like heat-seeking missiles that seek out and prey on the insecurities and vulnerabilities of new users,” said state Sen. Andrew Gounardes, a Democrat from Brooklyn who led the Senate effort to pass the legislation. “We have an urgency, a deep sense of urgency, to act. Parents expect us to act; young people expect us to act; teachers expect us to act; the concerned people in our lives expect us to act. And so we cannot leave this legislative session without taking measures”.

Assemblywoman Nily Rozic, a Queens Democrat and lead Assembly sponsor of both bills, also attended the governor’s press conference and said the bills will help curb “digital exploitation… We’re talking about millions of minors in the whole state.”

Lawmakers have also won the support of numerous organizations, many of them influential, including Common Sense Media, the Association of State School Boards, the New York State United Teachers Union, multiple urban leagues, Mothers Against Media Addiction and the United Federation of Teachers.

Some of the most coordinated opposition has been organized by Tech: NYC, which is behind the Inclusive Internet Coalition, and early on in its efforts it managed to gain support from the New York Civil Liberties Union, the Hispanic Federation, the Pride Center of the Brooklyn Community, New Immigrants Community Empowerment and the Asian American Federation.

Will Chabot, a spokesperson for Tech: NYC and the Inclusive Internet Coalition, said Times Union in March, after a bill aimed at regulating social media was introduced last year by Gounardes, Tech: NYC officials “began reaching out to groups representing communities that could be negatively impacted, including LGBTQ+, immigrant, and the elderly and more”.

Chabot noted that a provision of the legislation that would have established age and identity verification requirements “could have prevented people without government ID, such as undocumented immigrants, from going online to find legal services.”

“New York’s Comprehensive Internet Coalition was formed out of these conversations to educate communities about the harmful unintended consequences this legislation would have on many New Yorkers and to raise their voices and perspectives to a wider audience,” said he.

The Data Protection Act will prohibit websites from “collecting, using, sharing or processing personal data of individuals under the age of 18 without informed consent. It also prohibits the disclosure of minors’ data to third parties , unless there is an obligation in writing.”

The SAFE for Kids Act would prohibit social media platforms from offering addictive food to children younger than 18 without parental consent, and prohibits social media platforms from banning non-addictive food products or services when that consent is not obtained.

The stated goal of that bill is to protect the mental health of children who lawmakers said become addicted to social media platforms.

©2024 Times Union, Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.


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